Interoceanic Canal Studies

Abstract

The vessel characteristics of ocean shipping‐have undergone rapid change in recent years. Panama Canal traffic has also been subject to a substantial growth in number and size of transit. These factors, together with the restrictive size of the existing canal, have provided need to consider modernization of the canal or replacement by a sea‐level canal. In 1965, President Johnson appointed a five‐man commission, designated as the Atlantic‐Pacific Interoceanic Canal Study Commission, to investigate the possibility of the construction of a sea‐level canal. An important area of this investigation is the establishment of economical and safe channel criteria. The trend to increase the size of ships with equal or somewhat less maneuverability complicates the problem. This paper presents results of studies to optimize design operation criteria, considering the maneuverability of ships which are anticipated to use the new facility during its useful life, say between the years 1990 and 2040.