Photos | Atkins reveals historic canal in centre of Cardiff

Atkins has helped to reveal a historic canal in Cardiff centre, which has been covered for more than 70 years.

Cardiff Council appointed Atkins, a member of the SNC-Lavalin Group, to provide project management and commercial support on a £6m regeneration project in the city.

The scheme involves the ‘daylighting’ of 70 metres of the Dock Feeder Canal on Churchill Way, Cardiff.

The 19th century dock feeder provided a constant supply of water to the Bute docks. This allowed large container ships to dock in Cardiff, regardless of the tide, helping the city to become a world-leading exporter of iron ore and coal.

The dock feeder was paved over between 1948 and 1950. It will now form the centrepiece of a new sustainable urban district in the city centre.

The scheme also involves construction of two pedestrian footbridges, a cantilevered stage and rain gardens to manage surface water drainage, among other structures.

Atkins has designed the project, which also includes the upgrade of the surrounding highways network with the creation of cycleways, EV taxi charging points, refurbishment of existing roads and new bus links.

Ben Ferguson, senior landscape architect for Atkins and lead designer on the project, said: “It’s great to be able to reflect the industrial heritage of the area by re-opening the dock feeder.

“During the late 19th and the early 20th century this waterway was at the centre of a tree-lined boulevard and to re-establish that aesthetic, and to reveal the waterway once again within a forward looking and sustainable design will be incredibly exciting.”