Llangollen Canal part of the London Midland and Scottish Railway soon afterwards. After the takeover by the London Midland and Scottish Railway, regular maintenance was often not carried out, and gradually the canals silted up, so that boats could not operate with full loads. Traffic declined, and was significantly affected by a breach that occurred at the Perry Aqueduct, about to the south of Frankton locks, which effectively closed the Montgomeryshire Canal to all traffic. Traffic beyond Frankton to Llangollen had ceased in 1937, and the Frankton to Hurleston section was not used after 1939. The London Midland and Scottish Railway obtained
Trent and Mersey Canal and two smaller tunnels at Saltersford (since 2008 also one-way operation, alternating each half-hour), and Barnton to the "junction" with the River Weaver at Anderton Boat Lift near Northwich. After Anderton, the next major destination is Middlewich, where a junction with the 50 yard long Wardle Canal leads to the Middlewich Branch of the Shropshire Union Canal which gives access to Chester, Llangollen and (south on the 'Shroppie') a parallel route to Birmingham/Wolverhampton. South of Middlewich, having passed through Wheelock, the T & M climbs out of the Cheshire Plain via the 'Heartbreak Hill' locks (more traditionally known as the