THE Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal will not form part of a year 2001 project to restore the country's canals, British Waterways has revealed.

The organisation aims to restore and reopen more than 200 miles of Britain's historic canals before 2001.

But the Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal is in too bad a state and it will take "much longer" to restore its derelict path. Guy Lawson, a spokesman for British Waterways, said: "Parts of the canal have been filled in and even built over. There are groups working on it - the Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal society do some good work - but the canal will take longer than before 2001 to repair."

The canal runs from Manchester, opposite Granada Studios, through Salford and the Irwell Valley, before branching off to Bury and Bolton.

Britain's canals have seen a wave of activity in recent years as new developments see the recreational attraction of waterways.

The Rochdale Canal, which flows through Manchester's renovated and "trendy" Castlefield area, has been transformed into an attractive site.

Dave Fletcher, the Chief Executive of British Waterways, said: "People are discovering the real potential of the inland waterways. Nothing like this has been seen since the 1790s when investors galloped across the country to snap up shares in new canal schemes."

British Waterways were recently awarded a £59 million government grant and will use part of the money to restore Cheshire's Anderton Boat Lift before 2001.

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