Gas Street Basin, Canal basin in Birmingham, United Kingdom
Gas Street Basin is a canal basin in the center of Birmingham, where the Worcester and Birmingham Canal meets the Birmingham Canal Navigations network. It sits close to Broad Street and is bordered by towpaths, old brick structures, and newer buildings along the water's edge.
The Birmingham Canal was completed in 1773, and when the Worcester and Birmingham Canal was built nearby in the following decades, the two companies erected a strip of land called Worcester Bar to keep their waterways separate. A lock was added in 1815 so boats could pass through more easily, and the area grew into a key point for moving goods across the region.
The name of the basin comes from the gasworks that once stood nearby and supplied lighting fuel to the area. Today, many of the narrowboats moored here are used as permanent homes, and their painted sides are a familiar sight along the water.
The basin is easy to reach on foot and sits a short walk from Birmingham city center. There is no parking on site, so arriving by public transport or on foot is the practical choice.
The Worcester Bar, the narrow strip of land that once separated two rival canal companies, is still visible in the water today. The old footbridge from the 19th century that crosses it is still in use, and visitors can walk over it.
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