Express & Star

West Midlands Mayor and Dudley MP take a trip through historic canal tunnel for English Tourism Week

West Midlands mayor Andy Street and Dudley North MP Marco Longhi let their legs do the work when they spent part of the afternoon at a popular Black Country attraction.

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They visited Dudley Canal Trust on Friday as part of a tour of the Black Country in English Tourism Week and had a go at 'legging' in which the occupants of the boats can propel them along by pushing onto the wall in the narrow tunnels with their legs.

The popular attraction features the second longest navigable tunnel in the UK and attracts thousands of visitors each year, educating them on the history of the canals and the materials on them, some of which date back millions of years.

It was part of a busy week for Mr Longhi, who had already visited the Black Country Museum, Holden's Brewery and Dudley Zoo as part of the week co-ordinated by VisitEngland and which concludes on Sunday.

He said: "It was a wonderful experience and I was delighted to invite Andy along, it is the second time I have done it. The last one was a few years ago and it is marvellous to think about the history contained within the tunnels and on the canal.

"It is easy to see why the Black Country was the birth of the industrial revolution, it is clearly illustrated here and in the Black Country Living Museum which I also enjoyed visiting this week.

Andy Street said: "Visitors can clearly see the work that was done to build these beautiful caverns and why it was done for the industry here. Now it is a wonderful tourist attraction – I would encourage people who haven't already to visit when they can."