A waterbus service which used to run between Bingley’s Three Rise Locks and Shipley Wharf is to be reinstated as part of a £300,000 project.

The canal boat, Apollo, which will be operated by Shipley-based social enterprise group Dream Achievers, will begin carrying passengers along the Leeds-Liverpool canal this summer, British Waterways said.

It is part of a scheme aimed at attracting more tourists to the canal over the next three years – the Bingley-Saltaire-Shipley Destination Delivery Plan.

One of the main elements of the plan is to renovate Bingley’s Three Rise lock cottage, a building that existed by the waterway from 1850 until the late 1950s, to operate as a heritage centre.

British Waterways’ external funding manager Graham Ramsden said: “The plan has been very well received at public consultation.

“One aspiration is to reintroduce the waterbus service which previously ran between Shipley Wharf and Bingley Three Rise, and we are delighted to announce Apollo, which will be operated by Dream Achievers, will begin carrying passengers in the summer.”

In addition, a section of towpath in is being upgraded from Gallows Bridge to Otley Road Bridge and Victoria Street to Salts Mill Road, Shipley. It will include improved access from Victoria Street, Saltaire, to the towpath.

Robert Brough, of Airedale Partnership, said: “This will help attract people to the canal as a destination and includes new signage and information boards along the route.”

The project’s partnership, which includes Bradford Council and others with an interest in the canal, has secured £30,000 of funding from the Landfill Communities Fund for the Three Rise Lock cottage.

Mr Brough said: “A further meeting is planned for later this month which will review what has already been achieved and what the next steps are.”