One of only two bridges in Halton to still have its swing crane in place. Lengthsmen would patrol the canal looking out for bomb damage to the canal banks during WW2 as the canal was a vital transport link between Trafford Park, Manchester and Runcorn - and hence Liverpool Docks. If the canal suffered a direct hit and water started to leak from it, the stop planks would be swung into position by the crane to prevent the canal being drained along its whole length. Cranes and planks were situated around every two miles along the canal, so these relatively short stetches could be isolated to facilitate the repair of the canal banks without too much disruption of the transport link.