Press Release: NYS Canal Corporation, April 28, 2004

The New York State Canal Corporation today announced that the first boat on the Canal System this year will be a commercial tugboat, rather than a recreational pleasure craft. This shipment marks the first time a commercial vessel has opened the New York State Canal System in at least a decade.

"In recent years, we have seen a boost in barge shipments on the Canals, indicating that commercial use of the System is alive and well in New York State," said Canal Corporation Executive Director Michael Fleischer. "Businesses are realizing the benefits of shipping on the Canal and utilizing New York's waterways how they were first utilized nearly 180 years ago."

The tugboat kicking off the 2004 season is owned by Empire Harbor Marine of Albany, NY, and will be transporting a multi-million-dollar transformer to a power plant in Vermont via the Champlain Canal Thursday, April 29. The transformer, which originated in Germany, is too large to move by truck or rail.

"We want to encourage businesses to follow in the wake of Empire Harbor Marine and look to the Canal System for their own shipments," said Director of Canals Robert Bulman. "We are pursuing the continued return of commercial traffic with new initiatives, such as deepening sections of the waterway and working with operators to identify funding sources. Commercial shipping on the Canal is not only our past, it is a part of our future."

“We want to create a mix of recreational and commercial use of the Canal System; one that will benefit local communities, economies and boating enthusiasts, Bulman added. “The remarkable resource that we have in the Canal System can serve these ends well, both now and in the future.”

Special permission from the Corporation's Department of Maintenance and Operations for the early transit enabled two New York State businesses to competitively bid on the project. This process ensured a New York State Canal shipment rather than the alternative, which would have delivered the transformer to Vermont through Canada, via the St. Lawrence Seaway.

Empire Harbor Marine is rooted on the Canal System. It is one of a growing number of companies convinced that, with highway congestion and fuel prices a growing concern, the future of shipping on the Canal System is bright.

The shipment will be at the following locations Thursday:

• Approximately 6:30 a.m. - Waterford Canal Terminal Wall at the end of First Street, 100 yards from the Waterford Visitor's Center
• Approximately 7:30-8:00 a.m. - Champlain Canal Lock 1 in Halfmoon, on Route 32, one mile north of the General Electric Plant
• Approximately 10:00-10:30 a.m. - Mechanicville Terminal Wall, next to the police station

This shipment will be followed by the transport of a dinner cruise boat built by Scarano Brothers in Albany, which will be shipped on Champlain Canal to Ticonderoga. The 115-foot cruiser will be delivered to Shoreline Cruises in Lake George and transported over land from Ticonderoga to its final destination. This shipment is tentatively scheduled for May 9 and 10.

This vessel's delivery by both water and land demonstrates the geographic attributes of the Canal corridors, the Canals' ability to work with land transportation organizations and the benefits of waterway transportation in general.

The Canal Recreationway Committee (CRC), an advisory board created in 1993 to implement the Canal Recreationway Plan, has endorsed an extended navigation season in 2004. The renewal of commercial traffic on the Canal factored prominently in the CRC's decision, as tug and barge traffic tends to be heavier at the beginning and end of each navigation season.