SO9784 : Coombes Bridge crossing Dudley No.2 Canal
taken 7 years ago, near to Halesowen, Dudley, England
When the canal opened in 1798, a simple brick built hump back bridge was provided at this crossing point.
By then the major road transport route from Halesowen towards Birmingham was the Mucklow Hill Turnpike. The bridge was demolished by the Home Guard around 1944 as an anti-invasion measure to protect the canal side factories.
The present steel footbridge was erected on the 3rd March 1993 with work co-ordinated and funds raised by the Halesown Abbey Trust. The re-instatement of the bridge provides a lost link connecting the canal towpath to the Wedge, Leasowes Park and the green belt surrounding Halesowen Abbey.
Commissioned in 1793 to link the Dudley No.1 Canal at Park Head, near Netherton, with the Worcester and Birmingham Canal at Selly Oak. Originally about 11 miles long, now only approximately 5½ miles are fully navigable. From Hawne Basin, in Halesowen, to Selly Oak, the canal is derelict, but hopefully full restoration will be achieved in the not too distant future.