The key factor in your examples is No. 2. All others for domestic ore carriage are reliant upon that point.wlbblw wrote:Those #'s speak volumes of 4 things:
1- The larger size of modern ships & barges causing the vessel transit #'s to drop off while still maintaining some tonnage.
2- The decline in heavy industry around the Rust Belt causing #'s to drop.
3- The further development of the Mississippi system siphoning off some lakes #'s due to increased cargo movement there.
4- The outdated size of the Seaway limiting #'s & tonnage due to smaller locks as the world's ships get bigger.
The Great Lakes - 1946
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Guest
Re: The Great Lakes - 1946
Re: The Great Lakes - 1946
Those #'s speak volumes of 4 things:
1- The larger size of modern ships & barges causing the vessel transit #'s to drop off while still maintaining some tonnage.
2- The decline in heavy industry around the Rust Belt causing #'s to drop.
3- The further development of the Mississippi system siphoning off some lakes #'s due to increased cargo movement there.
4- The outdated size of the Seaway limiting #'s & tonnage due to smaller locks as the world's ships get bigger.
1- The larger size of modern ships & barges causing the vessel transit #'s to drop off while still maintaining some tonnage.
2- The decline in heavy industry around the Rust Belt causing #'s to drop.
3- The further development of the Mississippi system siphoning off some lakes #'s due to increased cargo movement there.
4- The outdated size of the Seaway limiting #'s & tonnage due to smaller locks as the world's ships get bigger.
Re: The Great Lakes - 1946
I agree. A wonderful film, well worth watching.
Unfortunately it also points out that tonnage through the Soo Locks has pretty much been stagnant for the past 70 years, while it has exploded elsewhere in the world.
They state that in 1946, the Soo Locks carried more tonnage than the Panama, Suez and Kiel Canals combined. So I did a little digging.
In 1946, the Soo Locks handled roughly 92 million tons of cargo (2 million of that in the Canadian lock). 17,995 vessel passages.
For 2014, the Soo Locks carried roughly 76 million tons of cargo and had 6631 vessel passages.
In 2013 the Panama Canal saw roughly 320 million tons of cargo, while in 2014 the Suez had 822 million tons and the Kiel 99 million tons. Granted, there may be some mixing of short and metric tons here, but they of similar magnitude. So the Panama, Suez and Kiel combined are now carrying roughly 16 times what the Soo sees on an annual basis. And the newly deepened Suez Canal just opened and the new Panama Canal is on its way next year.
Even the Ohio River sees more tonnage than the Soo Locks, with Lock and Dam 52 having 88 million tons in 2014.
76 million tons is still a significant amount of commerce. But it is far from the world leading pace that it once was.
Unfortunately it also points out that tonnage through the Soo Locks has pretty much been stagnant for the past 70 years, while it has exploded elsewhere in the world.
They state that in 1946, the Soo Locks carried more tonnage than the Panama, Suez and Kiel Canals combined. So I did a little digging.
In 1946, the Soo Locks handled roughly 92 million tons of cargo (2 million of that in the Canadian lock). 17,995 vessel passages.
For 2014, the Soo Locks carried roughly 76 million tons of cargo and had 6631 vessel passages.
In 2013 the Panama Canal saw roughly 320 million tons of cargo, while in 2014 the Suez had 822 million tons and the Kiel 99 million tons. Granted, there may be some mixing of short and metric tons here, but they of similar magnitude. So the Panama, Suez and Kiel combined are now carrying roughly 16 times what the Soo sees on an annual basis. And the newly deepened Suez Canal just opened and the new Panama Canal is on its way next year.
Even the Ohio River sees more tonnage than the Soo Locks, with Lock and Dam 52 having 88 million tons in 2014.
76 million tons is still a significant amount of commerce. But it is far from the world leading pace that it once was.
Re: The Great Lakes - 1946
Thanks for posting Don!
Excellent 'slice-of-time' newsreel.
Anyone interested in old Lakers needs to view it.
Excellent 'slice-of-time' newsreel.
Anyone interested in old Lakers needs to view it.
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Don_Detloff
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