Boaters are due to find out today whether the High Court will allow vessels to moor by the mouth of the River Brent.

Campaigners launched a legal battle to try and block the proposal, which they claim would partially obstruct Ferry Quay, in Brentford, and make it dangerous for boats to navigate the waterway.

Nigel Moore, chairman of Brentford Waterside Forum, said he felt after a court hearing on Tuesday that Mr Justice Williams would rule that visitors can moor where the river joins the Thames.

He said: “I was opposed to the moorings because the positioning of them right on the junction was recognised by everybody concerned some years back as presenting a danger.

“It did create a problem for the safety of any vessels coming through, especially on an ebbing tide. Common sense tells you if they are going to narrow the approach then that’s going to make it more difficult. It’s not rocket science.

“Any increase in freight traffic, especially barges, would present a great danger not only to the barges but also boats using the pontoons.

“Barges can bash each other together and nobody will care, but if you’ve got a small narrow boat getting walloped because the tide is pushing them, no matter how skillful the skipper is he will not be able to prevent something happening.”

Regents Network, which campaigns to bring London’s waterways “back to life”, said the proposal would block more than one-third of the river mouth, making navigation dangerous and threatening the development of water freight transport.

Mr Moore hopes to quash a Government planning inspector’s decision to grant permission for leisure and visitor moorings at Ferry Quay, on the north bank of the River Brent.

He claimed the inspector failed to impose sufficient safeguards to prevent encroachment into navigational channels in the key junction between the Thames and the west London canal network.

He said Government policies promote the increased use of Britain’s waterways for transporting freight and waste in order to alleviate pressure on the country’s roads.

But the moorings would only be safe if the current low levels of freight using the passage are maintained, he added.

British Waterways, which backs the proposal, believed the new scheme would enhance the attractiveness and use of the river without having a negative impact on traffic.