A MAJOR revamp for the Bolton and Bury Canal could bring a £1m annual windfall for each borough, a new study has found.

Campaigners from the Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal Society have long-standing ambitions to restore the waterway to its former glory.

And the latest feasibility study, commissioned jointly by the Canal and River Trust, the canal society and Bolton and Bury councils, has revealed the benefits of rejuvenating the five-mile stretch between the two towns.

The updated costs for the works have been put at £6.06m.

Consultants Atkins, the firm which undertook the study in late 2020, acknowledge one of the main obstacles is tackling the canal’s progress through Radcliffe.

An executive summary states: “This report examines the engineering challenges to be overcome, to restore the canal...for amenity boating traffic and towpath use.

“This includes elements of maintenance and repair, dredging, leak repair and tree clearance.

“But the most significant element of work required is the restoration of the canal under Water Street.

“Here a 60-metre length of canal has to be restored by raising and rebridging the A665, a four-lane carriageway near the centre of Radcliffe.”

The consultants says the other major breach, at Little Lever, and the infilled section at Nob End, was not considered as part of the study as this was being considered as part of a private development involving Watson Homes.

According to the study, the majority of the 88 responses to a public consultation on the possibility of full restoration were positive.

The report added: “Socio-economic benefits to the value of £1m per annum will accrue to Bolton MBC and Bury MBC areas.

“This indicates that the cost of restoration can be recouped within the local economy within eight years and will then continue on an annual basis.

“These benefits will flow to Farnworth, Kearsley, Little Lever, Radcliffe and Bury town centre as these areas are closest to the canal.”

A Canal and River Trust spokesman confirmed a feasibility study had been undertaken which “promises to be good news for the area”.

But officials have stressed that the planning process for any restoration still involved several future stages.