"requiring significant plant and equipment" I find this not believable given how the locks were built.........
"So it's good that CRT seem committed to repairing them. If any one of the 16 locks is not repaired when needed then our flight of locks and the Cheshire Ring will be closed permanently."
If it will be closed for most of the year, most years, as each lock fails and is rebuilt, it might as well be closed permanently.