OCCUPATION BRIDGE  
(1990s & 2025)  Restored by volunteers and contractors

Occupation Bridge can be found around a quarter of a mile west of the A38 at Whitminster. Following repairs in the 1990s, a thorough restoration took place in 2025. As part of the wider regeneration of the canal corridor, the area around the bridge is being transformed by Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust (GWT) and its volunteers. They have worked on a canal-side orchard and created scrapes and a pond to enhance wildlife habitats.

A38 ROUNDABOUT
(2020-2021) Restored by contractors

The A38 Roundabout marks the western extent of the ‘Missing Mile’ where the canal was infilled in the early 1970s during construction of the M5. The oversized roundabout presented a major blockage. Thanks to a £4m grant from National Highways Environmental Designated Funds in 2020, two new bridges and a channel removed this obstruction to navigation. Despite the build taking place right through the Covid-19 pandemic, work was able to proceed and the job was completed with only a slight delay to the projected date.

EASTINGTON FLIGHT OF LOCKS

Westfield Bridge and John Robinson Lock mark the eastern limit of the ‘Missing Mile’. The lock is the first on the Eastington flight of five but was infilled in the early 1970s as part of the works around the new M5. At that time, both were saved from demolition by a local farmer. The lock is well on the way to full working order. A brook above the lock has been culverted to allow the canal channel to be reformed.

Dock Lock was excavated and repaired by volunteers in the early 1990s and has recently seen a thorough upgrade.

Pike Lock had also been filled in so was excavated, then repaired in 1990. The structure has been fully restored in the last few years. Volunteers built a slipway above the lock in 1992.

Blunder Lock, Eastington was restored by volunteers with new gates fitted in 1992.  On 14th April that year a low-key reopening ceremony was performed by H.R.H. The Prince of Wales on his first visit to the canals.  The lock has since been refurbished.

Newtown Lock was the first on either of the canals to be restored to full working order in 1991. It too has benefitted from an upgrade in recent times.

PIKE BRIDGE 
(2005) restored by contractors

Pike Bridge has undergone many changes since its first brick-built incarnation. That was replaced by an attractive Edwardian structure which in turn was demolished in the 1970s with large chunks dumped in nearby Dock Lock.  The canal was infilled.  In 2005, the Cotswold Canals Trust led a project to reconstruct the bridge you see today.  The design mirrors that of the last bridge within the constraints of modern road safety standards.

BOND’S MILL BRIDGE
(2005) restored by contractors

Bond’s Mill Bridge was the world’s first ‘plastic’ (glass fibre) lifting bridge. designed to carry a full Highways loading to service Bond’s Mill Industrial Estate. The glass fibre element was satisfactory but problems with the road surface meant that the bridge will be replaced by a newly designed lift bridge.  The circular building alongside is a gun turret built during the Second World War.  Its function was to protect the industrial estate which made a valuable contribution to the war effort.

OCEAN JUBILEE BRIDGE
(2021) Bridge Installed by Network Rail Contractors

Ocean Jubilee Bridge was built over Christmas 2021 in only seven days by 150 Network Rail contractors working around the clock in three teams of 50. This unlocked a serious blockage and was a major achievement in the project to link the already restored canal back to Saul Junction. Thirty-seven concrete sections had already been cast on site as they were too big to transport.

FIVE STONEHOUSE BRIDGES
(1980s – 2012)

Ocean Swing Bridge had been fixed at a low level but was restored in 2012 as a fully operational swing bridge.

Stanley Downton road bridge was opened in the year 2000 as part of a new road scheme. It removed a blockage as did nearby Upper Mills Bridge in 2010 which replaced a fixed former swing-bridge at an entrance to Upper Mills industrial estate. Due to its proximity to a T Junction on the A419 and potential for long vehicles queuing back on to the busy road, the canal was moved slightly to the north to allow sufficient headroom under this fixed bridge.

Haywards Bridge, built in 1993, did not remove or create a blockage as this new canal crossing carried Ebley Bypass.  Proof that the restoration project was credible came with the building of this substantial crossing of the canal to full navigable dimensions. Ryeford Swing Bridge is a delightful pedestrian crossing of the canal, restored by volunteers in the 1980s.  Though it’s not quite the Forth Rail Bridge, the lattice work receives attention from today’s volunteers to keep the paintwork looking fresh

RYEFORD DOUBLE LOCK
(2011) Restored and gated by volunteers

Ryeford Double Lock combines two standard locks into one.  The bottom gates of the top lock are also the top gates of the bottom lock.  Following repairs in 1992 after a burst water main caused a wall to collapse, full restoration followed in 2011 when the whole lock was repaired and gates fitted. 

EBLEY
(2002-08)

Oil Mills Bridge was reinstated to remove a levelled road crossing. The remains of the original bridge were revealed as the blockage was excavated and a new concrete decking was supported on piling made within the old abutments.

Ebley was once known for its infilled canal but this length was excavated through a derelict industrial area in 2003. As part of planning consent, this was required of the developers who built the new ‘Ebley Wharf’ housing here. It’s now a new vibrant canal-side community.

DUDBRIDGE
(2012-13)

Two locks were restored at Dudbridge around a mile from Stroud town centre. The high flow of water on this stretch is caused by the streams that feed into the canal between here and Stroud. Before it was abandoned, they passed underneath but were diverted into the canal which was narrowed from Stroud to Ebley back in the early 1960s. This heavy flow could have caused a problem but has been turned into an advantage.

During 2012 and 2013, a large bypass system was constructed alongside the two Dudbridge Locks and a turbine installed resulting in the ‘Dudbridge Hydro Scheme’.  Accommodation was made for fish to move from one level to another. The scheme was part funded by donations and is paying back substantial returns from electricity sold into the grid with the proceeds used for maintenance of the canal.

STONEHOUSE DISTRICT BRIDGES & SLIPWAY
(2012-17)

Chestnut Lane Swing Bridge was built in 2012 to replace a fixed crossing. It’s a substantial affair, too heavy for manual operation, so is electrically operated with hydraulics doing the work. A slipway was built by volunteers just past the bridge to enable trail boats to use the canal while it is still landlocked.

Lodgemore Lift Bridge replaced a fixed low level bridge which itself had originally been a swing-bridge. Built on a skew, it features an innovative single counter-balance arm and electrical operation.

WALLBRIDGE
(1991-2018)

Wallbridge Lower Lock sits near the start of the Thames & Severn Canal, branching from the old Stroudwater Navigation. The steep slope above the lock was stabilised during construction of a retirement complex, allowing volunteers to fully restore the lock with contractors repairing the retaining wall below.

The A46 crossing, created in the 1960s by filling in the canal, was replaced by Stroud Brewery Bridge after a year-long project that diverted traffic along older road routes. The bridge is named after the former Stroud Brewery buildings once lining the canal.

Wallbridge Upper Lock, restored in 1991, required new gates and minor wall repairs in 2011.