The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will receive $479 million from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which will be used over several years to expand the Soo Locks and enable the “1,000-footer” sized ships to move between Lake Superior and Lake Huron via the St. Marys River in Sault Ste. Marie, MI. The project is estimated to cost between $1.3 and $1.5 billion.
The upgrade project was originally authorized in 1986 and again in 2018 after the Army Corps recalculated its economic feasibility. Work has already been underway, including preparing shipping channels around the locks and excavating 150,000 cubic yards of sandstone. The work will resume this spring with the final phase of construction beginning this year with an expected project finish in 2030. Read more here.