Itchen Navigation Twyford Lock near Winchester The route of a 'new' lock resulting from the M3

Twyford ‘Lane End Lock’ Problem The Itchen Navigation that once connected Southampton to Winchester, in the Southern England county of Hampshire, has long been just a footpath and completely un-navigable by any form of boat, even a canoe, for its total length. When the Winchester by-pass was constructed in the 1930’s a large culvert, which replaced the route of the Navigation, ran diagonally under the traffic light controlled crossroads. The construction of the M3 motorway in the early 1990’s. Replaced this large culvert with a smaller one as there was no hope of a replacement canal. The designers of the M3 at this point, near junction 11, provided a possibility of re-connecting the split Navigation at some time in the future by using a new route and lock, even though at the time there wasn’t the money nor the interest in doing so. Perhaps at some time in the future it may become a reality. ------ Twyford Lane End Lock – OS Grid Ref: SU479265