More than 200 industry stakeholders, including national, state, regional and local organizations, and companies, back new recommendations developed by an industry and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers working group to improve the reliability of the U.S. inland navigation system over the next 20 years.
The so-called Inland Waterways Capital Development Plan has been proposed in place of a lockage fee that both presidents Bush and Obama have unsuccessfully offered in the last three fiscal year budgets.
The final report and recommendations of the plan were ratified unanimously in April by the Inland Waterways Users Board and submitted to Congress.
The plan calls for $7.6bn for the 20-year Inland Waterway Capital Investment Program and would involve an average annual investment level of $380m, comprised of two sub-component average annual program levels: $320m for "construction" projects and $60m for major rehabilitation projects.
