Authorised by an Act of Parliament in 1766 (making it the oldest canal in London), it provides a short-cut from the River Thames at Limehouse Basin north-east to the River Lee Navigation, avoiding the tortuous curves of the lower reaches of the River Lee or Lea at Bow Creek. The Cut joins the Lea at Bromley-by-Bow. Before 1968 the Cut enjoyed its own direct link to the Thames, but this exit lock was replaced when a short length of new canal was constructed to link the Cut with the Regent's Canal Dock, now known as Limehouse Basin.
Factories and warehouses line the Cut in the first few hundred metres from the Thames, but are serviced by roads now. These days the canals are used for pleasure, both on and beside the water on the towpaths. Regent's Canal, Hertford Union Canal, River Lee Navigation and the Limehouse Cut form a square, for a distance of seven to eight miles which can walked or cycled. These scenic towpaths cut across roads and railways in the area, providing a distinct viewpoint
The history of the connection of the Basin to the River Thames and the LimehouseCut is complex, but in 1968, a short stretch of new canal was constructed to reconnect the LimehouseCut to the Basin, replacing the Cut's old direct link with the Thames.
The property boom and bust of the 1980s set back progress considerably, as did the construction of the Limehouse Link tunnel which was built under the north side of the basin in the early 1990s.
Limehouse Basin as seen from an apartment on the edge of the Marina, with the Thames River in the background.
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