The flight of steps that is the canal tow-path access at University station are being replaced. I would like to be able to tell you they are being replaced with a wheelchair-friendly, cycle-friendly ramp, like that at Bournville, but of course this being Birmingham, plenty of spurious reasons were found for not doing this. My personal favourite is that this is the site of a Roman fort. The fort has long-since disappeared under a canal, a railway, roads, a car park, and buildings, but this is sufficient to render doing a proper job "completely impossible".
It took persistent badgering of councillors by Push Bikes, particularly Tahir Ali, who seemed annoyed that someone was determinedly complaining about having to cycle along a very narrow path through an unlit tunnel, even though that path is Birmingham's idea of a strategic cycle route and takes traffic off the overloaded A38. Apparently it required negotiation and the seeking of funding.
There is a noticeable increase in the number of people cycling in Birmingham, and of course most of them opt for routes that don't involve mixing with motor vehicles. The canals make for a pleasant environment, and the resurfacing of the tow paths carried out using Cycling Ambition Grant money is an improvement over the previous mud bath, but the tow paths are too narrow for use as heavily used shared-use paths.
As part of the Birmingham Cycle Revolution most of the tow paths in Birmingham have been resurfaced. One of the most useful routes as far as cyclists are concerned is the Worcester and Birmingham canal tow path, as it is a close parallel route to the A38 between the city centre and Selly Oak, but it's more level, more direct, and free of motorised traffic. Since there are no road junctions to deal with, a good steady speed can be maintained. Unlike many other canals, there are no locks and only one tunnel between the city centre and the city limit.
British Waterways is doing towpath improvements on the canal between Granville St and St James Rd up to mid May. They are also resurfacing the Edgbaston Tunnel tow path with concrete. The tow path will have to be closed.
