b'16American Journal ofTransportation ajot.com(SHIFTcontinued fromriversinBelgium,whichwill page 12) takeglobalinvestmentinthe Thenewcanalspathwillproject to around 10 billion.cut through land that once consti- Thisrepresentsunprec-tuted the First World War Westernedentedfinancialsupportfor Fronts battlefieldsthe scene ofaninlandwaterwayproject. dreadful carnage. There will beTheSNECisviewedasone the sensitive task of unearthingoftheflagshipprojectsinthe soldiersremainsduringexca- EUsGreenDealprogramto vationworks.Inanticipationdecarbonizefreighttransport, ofsuchoperations,thepublicPierre-YvesBiet,theSCSNEs agencymanagingtheproject,director, Partnerships and Terri-the Socit du Canal Seine-Nordtories, told AJOT in an interview.Europe(SCSNE),hasenteredWe are targeting the trans-into a partnership with the Brit- fer of long-distance road haulage ish Commonwealth War Gravesto barge and have had some very Commission and its French andpositive feedback from the poten-German counterparts. tial users of the canalshippers from the agricultural sector, such g lobalI nvestment of10as cereals and the food process-b IllIon ing, construction/aggregates, chemi-Scheduled to open in 2030,cal, metal and recycling industries the SNEC will be able to accom- whoconsideritsdevelopmentScheduled to open in 2030, the SNEC will be able to accommodate barges which are 606 feet long and 37 feet wide.modatebargeswhichare185ashelpingthemtransitiontoa meters (606 feet) long and 11.40greener logistics model. We areIn2025,theprojectwillProjectionsarethatfivehinterland hubs, Biet observed.meters (37 feet) wide and thatalso focused on the high-volumegathermomentumintheOiseto10yearsafteritscommis- Containers arriving at sea-can carry up to 4,400 tonnes ofcontainermarketforconsumerValleyandbyend-2026-earlysioning,thenewcanalcouldports would be loaded directly freight per journey (the equiva- goods for which the canal can be2027,majorconstructionwillbehandlingaround17millionon to barges and head for these lent of 220 trucks). This amountscompetitive compared to road,have begun everywhere on thetonnesoffreightannuallyandinlandhubs.Oncethere,they to a seven-fold increase on theBiet noted. 107-kilometre route of the newcontribute to the reduction of 1wouldbeunpackedandthe loading capacity of vessels cur- Roadsmodalshareofcanal,employingasmanyasmillion trucks on French roadsgoods prepared for on-forward-rently plying the existing Canalfreighttransportinthispartof6,000 people, Biet revealed. on a yearly basis and as many asingeitherbyriver/canal,road du Nord. Europe has not ceased to increaseEquippedwithsixlocks2.3 million on a European scaleor rail.Thelatestestimatesputbut with the canal in service we including two with a rise ofdiminishingCO2emissions constructioncostsat5.1bil- can make a contribution, admit- morethan25metersthreeconsiderably. l ImItIngI mPact onlion-whichhasraisedmoretedlyarelativelysmallone,tocanal bridges and some 62 roadn aturale cosystemthan a few eyebrows - funded byreversing the trend and promoteand rail bridges and a reservoirh InterlanDr ole Asfortheenvironmen-theEuropeanUnion(EU),themulti-modality, he added. to support the canal in the eventGiven that road traffic bot- talaspectsoftheproject,Biet Frenchstateandregionalandof a drop in water levels in thetlenecks around major ports suchunderlined that large efforts have local public authorities. t echnologIcalc hallenge Oise Riverthe SNECs supplyasLeHavre,Rouen,Dunkirk,been made to limit the impact of This sum does not includeWork is already well under- chainandlogisticsneedsareAntwerpandRotterdam,havethenewcanalsconstructionon there-developmentofinfra- way to divert a four-kilometer- likelytobecomplexwiththebecomecommonplace,thereexistingwetlandzonesandthe structure on the Seine and Oiselong stretch of the Oise River toexpertise of project cargo play- is scope for inland ports dottedsensitive biodiverse areas situated rivers,inFranceandalsoonmake way for the canal. ers tested to the full. along the new canal to emerge as(SHIFTcontinued on page 50)PORT TAMPA BAYFLORIDAS LARGEST &MOST DIVERSIFIED PORT BULKBREAKBULKCONTAINERREFRIGERATEDROROSHIP BUILDING & REPAIRCRUISE'