Canal Corporation Announces New Operating Hours For 2006

Extended Springtime Hours to Encourage Greater Tourism and Recreation on Canals

Press Release: NYS Canal Corporation, March 21, 2006

Carmella R. Mantello, Director of the New York State Canal Corporation, today announced that boaters and visitors to the historic New York State Canal System will be able to enjoy two additional hours of Canal cruising when the 2006 season begins on May 1. 

"Through our extensive public outreach last summer and fall, we heard loud and clear that boaters wanted the option of longer hours in the spring," Mantello said.  "While extending our hours of operation presented a challenge, I'm pleased that we were able to make this important change to benefit the boating public."

Extending the springtime hours of operation from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily was a key recommendation in the "Report on the Future of the New York State Canals" prepared by the Canal Corporation and an Interagency Task Force and submitted to Governor George E. Pataki in December of 2005.  Traditionally, the springtime hours of operation on the Canals have been from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.

In order to accommodate the change in hours, the Canal Corporation will stagger the starting date of its seasonal employees, use roving operators, and reallocate resources for the first two weeks of the season, resulting in no additional costs to the Corporation.  The dates and hours of Canal operation will be as follows, weather permitting:

• May 1 to May 14 - 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
• May 15 to September 15 - 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.
• September 16 to November 15 - 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The Canal Corporation will continue to provide 24-hour lock service to commercial operators, pending the availability of lock personnel.

The 2006 operating hours and season dates continue a trend toward a longer navigation season, with better hours for boaters. As recently as 2002 and 2003, the length of the Canal season had been reduced to 182 days. This year's season will be 199 days, with longer hours in the springtime. Additional extensions may be considered if usage trends warrant.

"We want to ensure that New Yorkers and visitors to the Canals can reap the full benefits of this remarkable asset on an annual basis," Mantello said. "By extending our hours and maximizing the operating season, we hope to encourage even more visitors to come explore this historic waterway and the communities and attractions along its shores."

The New York State Canal System is comprised of four historic waterways, the Erie, the Champlain, the Oswego and the Cayuga-Seneca Canals. Spanning 524 miles across New York State, the waterway links the Hudson River, Lake Champlain, Lake Ontario, the Finger Lakes and the Niagara River with communities rich in history and culture.

In late May 2005, Governor Pataki unveiled his vision for establishing the Erie Canal Greenway and, ultimately, the Empire State Greenway, connecting the Niagara, Erie and Hudson River Greenways. The Canal Corporation and an interagency task force conducted an extensive public outreach campaign to gather input and ideas, and develop a comprehensive set of recommendations to create the new Erie and Empire State Greenways and examine certain roles and responsibilities currently assigned to the Canal Corporation. The recommendations were delivered in a report to the Governor in late December 2005.