The Houston Ship Channel expansion project is making substantial progress towards its completion goal in 2025.
The Port of Houston Authority has announced that dredging of the first segment, Segment 1A, from Bolivar Roads to Redfish, has been completed on schedule and within budget.
This segment of 11.5 miles in the Bay is expected to improve safety, reduce congestion, and increase vessel transit times by approximately one hour by reducing daylight restrictions.
“The completion of segment 1A is a great step forward to sustain the busiest waterway in the nation,” said Roger Guenther, Executive Director at Port Houston.
“It moves Port Houston one step closer to handling unrestricted two-way traffic of larger vessels for the benefit of all stakeholders.”
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The deepening and widening of the channel is expected to generate more jobs in the region and improve the overall efficiency of the waterway.
Project 11 is a $1 billion commitment to the economy and the safety of nearly 20,000 vessels that transit the Houston Ship Channel every year, Guenther added.
The construction of Long Bird Island is still ongoing and is expected to be finished later in the year. The new 4-5-acre island habitat will have diverse land elevations, shore protection, oyster wave trips, and a lagoon.
Meanwhile, dredging work is progressing in the Redfish to Bayport segment of the Channel (Segment 1B) with a target completion date set for 2024.
The Port Houston recorded its best year yet in 2022 with annual container volume up by 14 per cent.
The port recorded just shy of 4 million TEU this year, at 3,974,901 TEU. This is nearly double the volume posted six years earlier in 2016, and 492,526 TEU more than in 2021.
