Fonserannes water slope
Encyclopedia
The Fonserannes Water Slope, is a disused inclined plane
on the Canal du Midi
parallel to the Fonserannes Lock. It has a rise of 13.6 m (44.6 ft) and a slope of five degrees.
This technique for a water slope
was described by the French engineer Jean Aubert
in 1961.
The slope, the second and last to be constructed in France, was built between 1980 and 1983 with the intent of replacing the seven locks at the Fonserannes Locks
. Trial operations commenced in May 1984. However, within weeks a number of technical problems emerged as oil leaking from the hydraulic system lubricated the concrete tracks and the wheels on the lift were unable to gain sufficient traction to raise the chamber to the top of the slope. It took until 1986 to resolve the technical, contractual, and insurance issues. This problem was never satifactorily resolved and the slope was abandoned officially on 11 April 2001.
The first water slope
in France was the Montech water slope
on the Canal de Garonne
in the commune of Montech
.
Water slope
A water slope is a type of canal inclined plane built to carry boats from a canal or river at one elevation up to or down to a canal or river at another elevation.-Operation:...
on the Canal du Midi
Canal du Midi
The is a long canal in Southern France . The canal connects the Garonne River to the on the Mediterranean and along with the Canal de Garonne forms the Canal des Deux Mers joining the Atlantic to the Mediterranean. The canal runs from the city of Toulouse down to the Étang de Thau...
parallel to the Fonserannes Lock. It has a rise of 13.6 m (44.6 ft) and a slope of five degrees.
This technique for a water slope
Water slope
A water slope is a type of canal inclined plane built to carry boats from a canal or river at one elevation up to or down to a canal or river at another elevation.-Operation:...
was described by the French engineer Jean Aubert
Jean Aubert (engineer)
Jean Aubert was a French engineer. In 1961 he used the idea of the German engineer Julius Greve from the last century to describe a pente d'eau, which was a way of moving boats up the gradient of a canal without locks. The design consisted of a sloping channel through which a wedge of water on...
in 1961.
The slope, the second and last to be constructed in France, was built between 1980 and 1983 with the intent of replacing the seven locks at the Fonserannes Locks
Fonserannes Locks
Fonserannes Lock is a staircase lock on the Canal du Midi near Béziers.It consists of eight ovoid lock chambers and nine gates, which allow boats to be raised a height of 21.5 m, in a distance of 300 m....
. Trial operations commenced in May 1984. However, within weeks a number of technical problems emerged as oil leaking from the hydraulic system lubricated the concrete tracks and the wheels on the lift were unable to gain sufficient traction to raise the chamber to the top of the slope. It took until 1986 to resolve the technical, contractual, and insurance issues. This problem was never satifactorily resolved and the slope was abandoned officially on 11 April 2001.
The first water slope
Water slope
A water slope is a type of canal inclined plane built to carry boats from a canal or river at one elevation up to or down to a canal or river at another elevation.-Operation:...
in France was the Montech water slope
Montech water slope
The Montech water slope is a type of canal inclined plane built on the Canal de Garonne, in the commune of Montech, Tarn-et-Garonne, South West France...
on the Canal de Garonne
Canal de Garonne
The Canal de Garonne, formerly known as Canal latéral à la Garonne, is a French canal dating from the 19th century which connects Toulouse to Castets-en-Dorthe. The remainder of the route to Bordeaux uses the Garonne River. It is the continuation of the Canal du Midi which connects the...
in the commune of Montech
Montech
Montech is a commune in the Tarn-et-Garonne department in the Midi-Pyrénées region in southern France.-References:*...
.