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Oxford City Council and Canal & River Trust were awarded funding from the Government’s annual Air Quality Grant, to install eco moorings at the Aristotle Lane visitor moorings.
This will provide visiting boaters with electrical power infrastructure as an alternative to diesel engines, generators and wood burners for their daily heat and energy needs.
Below is the link to the how to guide and portal for MeterMacs, which will enable you to book onto these moorings. We have added a FAQ document if you needed some more information and some handy tips.
We've created some FAQs to help answer specific questions about using the short-stay visitor eco-moorings at Aristotle Lane in Oxford.
‘Eco-mooring’ is the name given to the installation of electric charging points at Aristotle Lane. The eco-moorings are comprised of three electric charging bollards (2 charging sockets per bollard) that will provide electricity for up to six visiting boats.
This project has installed three electric bollards, each with two sockets. Two of the bollards are equipped with two 16amp sockets each, while one bollard has one 16amp socket and one 32amp socket.
The 32-amp socket will have the sole purpose of trialling existing and expected increased future demand for electric propulsion boats (e-boats) on the Oxford Canal. All the other sockets have been installed with adequate ducting and capability to be easily upgraded to 32-amp in the future, as demand allows.
The charging points were installed to allow for boaters to use electricity for their daily energy needs and to charge up their batteries as they are moored.
The Canal and River Trust is responsible for their management and regular maintenance.
No, the mooring regulations remain unchanged. The eco-moorings will be available for boaters without needing to pre-book a space.
However, you will need to ensure that your metermacs account is in credit to allow you to connect to the electricity. If you don’t have an account, you can set one up via the Meter-Macs portal
You can stay for up to 48 hours free of charge all year round. Standard cruising requirements apply.
Yes. You will need to set up a Meter-Macs account as explained below. This allows you to pay to have electricity credit to use at the eco-mooring site. You will be provided with a unique PIN that you will then type into the keypad on the electricity bollard. You will then be able to use the electricity, and the costs of your usage will be directly charged to your account.
You can find more information on how to use Meter-Macs here:
No, you will not be forced to use the electricity in order to moor. However, all boats who are able to plug in are strongly encouraged to make use of the electric power supply.
No, there are no official restrictions on using engines, generators or solid fuels at this mooring. However, this area has been designated a quiet zone, given its proximity to residential areas and to a recreational ground.
Therefore, we strongly encourage boats to avoid the use of generators or engines, and the burning of anything but smokeless fuels as these all constitute important sources of air and noise pollution.
If the bollard doesn’t provide power straight away, it may be switched off. Please check the switch on the bollard by unscrewing the protective plate on the front of the bollard and setting the switch to the ‘On’ position.
If they are still not working, please contact the customer service team from the contacts below.
[email protected] or telephone 0303 040 4040
Last Edited: 09 July 2025
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