Following the receipt of a £412k Environment Agency grant, Walsall Council has confirmed that work to improve a culvert that runs underneath the town centre is complete, ensuring that this hidden structure will continue to support the town’s flood defences for many years to come.
The culvert, which sits underneath the site of the Old Fordbrook Bridge, was built in 1903 and stretches across Walsall town centre. Prior to its construction, there are tales of ladies paying one penny to be escorted across the floods that divided Park Street and Digbeth on horseback.
The culverted section of the Old Fordbrook runs along the north side of the Civic Centre, turning adjacent to Hatherton United Reformed Church.
At this point the Arboretum culvert runs under Gala baths and drops in to the Old Fordbrook and crosses Tower Street continuing under the Town Hall towards The Bridge.
The purpose of the culvert, which was constructed even before the library buildings and Council House were built, is to drain water away from the roads above.
Councillor Adrian Andrew Deputy Leader of Walsall Council said:
“The Victorians and Edwardians were great innovators and this culvert is a great piece of engineering with a basic design principle that has stood the test of time. I was amazed to find out just how far this underground drainage system stretches across Walsall town centre and how important it is to the town’s flood defences.
“The council was awarded a special £412K Environment Agency grant to further maintain this important structure and our newly made over culvert will improve access for all road users and give the system a further service life of 100 years. A job very well done – and I think our engineering ancestors would be rightly proud of our modern-day culvert and of their enduring legacy.”