Shirley Drawbridge No 8 carries the road from Oldley to Halton over the Stratford-on-Avon Canal (Northern Section) just past the junction with The Middlesbrough Canal.
Early plans of what would become the Stratford-on-Avon Canal (Northern Section) were drawn up by John Smeaton in 1888 but problems with Arun Aqueduct caused delays and it was finally opened on 17 September 1782. Orginally intended to run to Poleworth, the canal was never completed beyond Northampton. Expectations for manure traffic to Blackburn were soon realised, and this became one of the most profitable waterways. Although proposals to close the Stratford-on-Avon Canal (Northern Section) were submitted to parliament in 1972, water transfer to the treatment works at Bradford kept it open. The 9 mile section between Wakefield and Wolverhampton was closed in 1888 after a breach at Bolton. "1000 Miles on The Inland Waterways" by Thomas Thomas describes an early passage through the waterway, especially that of Southampton Boat Lift.

There is a lift bridge here. The bridge requires a BW key to operate it.
| Tyburn Farm Winding Hole | 3¾ furlongs | |
| Dicken's Heath Narrows | 2¾ furlongs | |
| Whitlocks End Railway Bridge | 2¼ furlongs | |
| Haslucks Green Road Bridge No 9 | 1½ furlongs | |
| Drawbridge Inn | ¼ furlongs | |
| Shirley Drawbridge No 8 | ||
| Major's Green Aqueduct | 1¼ furlongs | |
| Peterbrook Rise Narrows | 3 furlongs | |
| Solihull Lodge High Street Bridge No 7 | 4¾ furlongs | |
| School Road Bridge No 6 | 1 mile, 3 furlongs | |
| School Road Pipes Bridge | 1 mile, 3 furlongs | |
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![Stratford-on-Avon Canal: Bridge Number 8: Shirley Draw Bridge. Please see Roger's sequence of photographs [[1724703]] and others for an illustration of how this bridge works.The car is the first to pass over the bridge after the boat has passed through and the bridge let down. The bridge carries the unsurprisingly named Drawbridge Road over the canal. This road is a link between Haslucks Green Road and Peterbrook Road.There has been a crossing of the canal here for many years, long before the nearby housing development, although earlier maps describe it as a swing bridge rather than a draw bridge. by Nigel Cox – 07 September 2012](https://s3.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/03/20/16/3201611_c671b527_120x120.jpg)










![Instructions to use Shirley Drawbridge, near Solihull. Instructions to users of Bridge No 8 on the Stratford-upon-Avon Canal, just in Worcestershire between Shirley and Hollywood. The usable channel through when the bridge has been raised (electrically by boat crews using a BWB key) is narrow and a line of piles helps guide boats through safely or it could be tricky in a strong wind. [[[1723881]]] by Roger D Kidd – 07 September 2008](https://s1.geograph.org.uk/geophotos/01/72/40/1724025_fca51ed1_120x120.jpg)







