Alternative route without steps: from
Centenary Square, take Broad Street and rejoin the route at Gas Street
Basin. Or, exit the ICC mall and follow signs to the right for crossing
the canal.
View
route without steps
Brindleyplace is named after James Brindley, the engineer
who designed and built the Birmingham Canal and others in England.
Optional detour: if you continue straight on after
crossing the bridge, you can explore Brindleyplace. (Follow signs from
the ICC for disabled access to Brindleyplace.)
This whole area was redeveloped, bringing a new lease
of life to the canal area. Take a look at the impressive modern architecture,
the Sea Life Centre and the Ikon Gallery.
If you're out in Birmingham at night, especially along
the canals, you might see bats. The canals, with their long stretches
of straight waterways, act like 'motorways' for animals and birds. Bats
roost all over Birmingham city centre: in cellars and roofs, in canal
tunnels, in old trees.
Experts identify what sorts of bats live in Birmingham
with a 'bat detector'. It works by detecting different frequencies of
sound wave that the bats emit. There are known to be nine species of bat
here - and all of the UK bat species are protected. It's the roosts which
are protected and bats like to return to the same areas. Even if there
are no bats in a building, if it's a roost, developers have to be very
careful not to disturb it.
![ICC mall](/staticarchive/372faf0081815dc4429b0fa87062cd876fc5c248.jpg) |
Broad Street Tunnel |
Turn left after crossing the footbridge and walk along
the canal - you need to be on the other side - use the bridge to cross
over. Mind your head as you go through the tunnel!
View
map of this stage
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