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| One-way traffic is no longer the norm on the recently expanded Suez Canal. Now ships can travel in both directions. |
The newly expanded Suez Canal, which officially opened on August 6, 2015, is now able to handle traffic in both directions, a key improvement made possible by:
- the addition of a 35 kilometre parallel waterway flanking the existing 145 year old canal
- the deepening of the existing canal
The improvements have cut transit time from 18 hours to 11 hours and boosted the canal’s daily capacity to 97 ships, an increase of just over 50 percent.
Opened in 1869, the Suez Canal accommodates about 7.5 percent of the world’s sea trade. The Canal’s 193 kilometre waterway provides the shortest sea link between Asia and Europe, and is also an increasingly popular option on the Asia – North America trade lane.
For more information, contact Chris Barnard, Vice President – Projects & Market Development.
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