Navigation

Use of Cape Cod Canal saves mariners an average of 135 miles of coastwise travel while circumnavigating Cape Cod. Support for the navigation mission at the Canal includes a state of the art Marine Traffic Control System, Marine Traffic Patrol by Corps vessels, and maintenance and improvement of the Canal channel and mooring basins.

The Cape Cod Canal is the world's widest sea-level canal at 480 feet wide and has authorized depth of 32 feet at mean low water. The swift running Canal current changes direction every six hours and can reach a maximum velocity of 5.2 miles per hour, during the ebb (westerly) tide. The three bridges that span the Canal were designed to allow for 135 feet of vertical clearance above mean high tide.

Vessels up to 825 feet in length can use the Canal's safer, shorter route, but many small recreational craft enjoy the waterway as well. All mariners should familiarize themselves with the Canal's navigation regulations before entering. Recreational boaters are also strongly urged to review the Canal boating safety guide, which outlines the unique hazards boaters face while transiting the Canal. The navigation bulletin advises all mariners about shoaling and current construction projects that affect navigation in the Canal.

Supporting the nation by maintaining and improving navigation channels was among the Corps of Engineers' earliest Civil Works missions, dating to Federal laws in 1824 authorizing the Corps to improve safety on the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers and several other ports. The Corps maintains navigable waterways, such as the Cape Cod Canal, by keeping them at Congressionally authorized depths and widths through dredging and other means. The improvement of the original privately owned Cape Cod Canal is one example of how the improvement process works.

Today, the Corps maintains more than 12,000 miles (19,200 km) of inland waterways and operates 235 locks. These waterways, a system of rivers, lakes and coastal bays improved for commercial and recreational transportation, carry about 1/6 of the Nation's inter-city freight, at a cost per ton-mile about 1/2 that of rail or 1/10 of trucks transportation. Ports and waterways also play a role in national defense. Practically all the heavy equipment and supplies bound for overseas military deployments moved by ship through ports maintained by the civil works program. Contact the Navigation Data Center for more information on the Corps navigation mission nation wide.

.