This article has been reprinted from the Oct. 17 USDA Grain Transportation Report.
The Arkansas River recently reopened for navigation to the Port of Catoosa, which is located near Tulsa, OK, and is the head of navigation for the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System (MKARNS).
Dredging and lock repair work (including removing a grounded barge at Lock 16) is finished, and planned navigation resumed on October 2.
For the week ending October 12, 51 barges transited Lock 1, the last lock before the confluence of the MKARNS—which serves ports in Arkansas and Oklahoma—and the Mississippi.
This is the largest number of barges through the lock since March 23, 2019.
Tow size restrictions of six barges are still in effect, with plans to add buoys during November that may allow the maximum tow size to increase to 12 barges per tow.