US Gulf:
Calcasieu Lock was scheduled to begin regular travel closures on Jan. 30, blocking navigation through the site from 7:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, through least March 3. The project could be extended, sources said.
Work anticipated to begin on Feb. 6 at Bayou Boeuf Lock will see the site mostly closed to vessel traffic between 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., Monday through Thursday, through Feb. 16. Intermittent transit will be permitted during working hours, with 6-12 hour delays expected.
Ongoing guidewall replacement efforts at Bayou Sorrel Lock triggered intermittent weekday shutdowns between 6:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., triggering waits up to 19 hours through the week. The project is slated to continue into March 2023.
Colorado Lock maintenance and repair work was due to end on Jan. 27, concluding a period of daily navigation interruptions noted between 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Delays were recorded in a wide 16-73 hour range on Jan. 25.
Monday-through-Friday travel shutdowns continued at Brazos Lock, blocking navigation between 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and prompting intermittent 4-10 hour waits. The outages were scheduled to continue through Feb. 8.
A series of 8-24 hour shutdowns were expected at Miles 63-64 of the Port Allen Route in February due to planned bridge replacement work. Algiers Lock will face 5-7 days of daytime shutdowns in February or March for lock repairs.
Port Allen Lock delays ran up to 21 hours for the week, according to Corps lock data. Most Industrial Lock waits fell in a wide 9-29 hour range.
Mississippi River:
Improved water levels on the upper Mississippi River allowed for virtually restriction-free travel during the week, although conditions were expected to worsen in February. Normal seasonal weather patterns are likely to produce unstable navigating conditions through March, sources said.
Draft limits for dry barges were raised to 18 feet between St. Louis and Cairo, an improvement from the area’s 10-foot limit reported one week earlier. The St. Louis river gauge, posted at 2.94 feet and rising on Jan. 25, was forecast to recede below the 0.00-foot mark on Feb. 3-4.
Dredging operations continued at Mile 28.5 of the upper river, while similar work was heard wrapping up at Mile 39 early in the week.
Sources reported a lengthy closure at Mile 744 of the lower river over the weekend due to a grounded vessel, necessitating a roughly 24-hour travel shutdown while recovery operations were underway. Wait times ran up to 54 hours at Mel Price Lock on Jan. 25, while tows were delayed as high as 71 hours through Chain of Rocks Lock during the week.
Maintenance at the I-10 bridge, located at Miles 228-230 of the lower river, triggered a blanket safety advisory on travel through the area. Revetment operations at Miles 192-193 were expected to prompt sporadic travel outages through the end of January.
Illinois River:
Sources noted raised wickets at Peoria Lock and LaGrange Lock, necessitating lockages at both locations. Delays ran as high as 11 hours at Peoria, while boats waited up to 15 hours to pass LaGrange. Marseilles Lock wait times were posted in a wide 10-69 hour range.
Brandon Road Lock, Dresden Island Lock, and Marseilles Lock are slated to undergo a complete 120-day shutdown starting in June, effectively closing the Illinois Waterway to commercial travel through the end of September.
Ohio River:
Bellville Lock returned from hydraulic repairs on Jan. 20, ending a four-day run of daylight-hour stoppages causing 12-24 hour wait times. Bellville Lock and Racine Lock are schedule to undergo a round of secondary chamber shutdowns between Jan. 30 and Feb. 26, while Racine will follow with a primary chamber closure from Feb. 26 to March 12.
Intermittent JT Meyers Lock main chamber shutdowns are expected Jan. 30 through Aug. 20 due to floating mooring repairs. Greenup Lock will close its main chamber for repairs and maintenance March 12 through April 12, and the secondary chamber at Melville Lock will shut for repairs April 17 through Aug. 4.
On the Tennessee River, Kentucky Lock delays were noted up to 13 hours during the week. Wilson Lock waits ran as high as 20 hours.
Arkansas River:
Norrell Lock is scheduled to close to navigation for a full 48 hours on Jan. 30-31. No lockages will be performed during this time.