Editing Thames and Medway Canal (section)

==1846 to today==
[[Image:GravesendCanalBasin3454.JPG|thumb|The Gravesend basin]]
The remainder of the canal, between Higham and Gravesend, continued to be used until 1934. It suffered bomb damage during [[World War II]], and some areas have been back-filled or are choked with reed growth. The Strood canal basin, long orphaned by the loss of the tunnel, was back-filled in 1986 and has now been built over.

Since 1976 the canal has been in the hands of the Thames & Medway Canal Association (TMCA), which has dredged some areas. British Rail restored one of the swing bridges. The towpath has recently been renovated for use by pedestrians and cyclists. It now forms part of Route 1 of the [[National Cycle Network]] from [[Dover]] to [[John o' Groats]]. For walkers, it forms part of circular walks linked to the [[Saxon Shore Way]].

There are now plans to fully renovate the canal and make it a focal point of development in Gravesend, to benefit the town while meeting the [[Thames Gateway]] project's demands for housebuilding.<ref>[http://www.gravesham.gov.uk/media/pdf/q/m/SPDsection1to4.pdf Gravesend Canal Basin Area and North East Gravesend Supplementary Planning Document. Draft for public consultation November 2005] Gravesham Borough Council. Retrieved 30 December 2005.
</ref> In October 2004, the Gravesend [[canal basin]] was dredged, after which the [[lock (water transport)|lock]] gates into the Thames were renovated, enabling the basin to be used by boats from the river. The line of the canal has been protected from development since 1992.<ref>{{cite book |first=Jane |last=Cumberlidge |title=Inland Waterways of Great Britain |publisher=Imray, Laurie, Norie and Wilson |page=308 |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-84623-010-3}}</ref>