Editing Leeds and Liverpool Canal (section)

===Operation===
The canal took almost 50 years to complete; in crossing the Pennines the Leeds and Liverpool had been beaten by the [[Huddersfield Narrow Canal]] and the [[Rochdale Canal]]. The most important cargo was always coal, with over a million [[long ton|tons]] per year being delivered to Liverpool in the 1860s. Even in Yorkshire, more coal was carried than limestone. Once the canal was fully open, receipts for carrying merchandise matched those of coal. The heavy industry along its route, together with the decision to build the canal with broad locks, ensured that (unlike the other two trans-Pennine canals) the Leeds and Liverpool competed successfully with the railways throughout the 19th century and remained open through the 20th century.