The original Birmingham Main Line canal stretched for over 36km from Aldersley Junction (with the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal) to the centre of Birmingham. The canal was opened to traffic in 1769 and was fully open in 1772. However, the original line of the canal was long and winding as it followed the contours of the land, with a number of deviations to give access to the many industries in the area. This was creating bottlenecks along the route and also making journey times longer than they needed to be.
A much straighter New Main Line was built in the 1820s, which opened in 1827. Much of the original main line was kept especially where it gave access to industry, some of the old loops became branches of the new main line, this included the Soho Loop.
The Soho Loop is a 2km section of canal which loops off and then rejoins the New Main Line just outside of the city centre. The loop once had a branch which served Matthew Bolton's Soho Manufactory. The remnant of the branch is now used for private boat moorings. A notable location the Soho Loop passes is Winson Green prison and also Soho railway depot.
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| Rotton Park Junction, the Soho Loop begins under the bridge |
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| Soho Loop |
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| A pipe bridge |
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| Winson Green junction, the Main Line is beyond |
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| The Soho Branch |
