Waterways wonder: Burnley Embankment

The ‘Straight Mile’ was one of the original 'Seven Wonders of the Waterways' as selected by IWA founder Robert Aickman in 1955. We take a look at why it’s still as impressive today

Of all Robert Aickman’s Seven Wonders of the Waterways, Burnley Embankment is the one that many struggle to remember, which is a shame because it is a marvellous engineering achievement and provides a truly remarkable panorama of the town’s industrial surroundings.

The embankment carries the Leeds & Liverpool Canal across the River Calder and its diminutive tributary, the Brun. Despite taking years to build, it did away with the need for time-consuming locks to lift and lower the waterway, which would have slowed down boats carrying cargo, such as coal to the town’s many mills.