Maas–Waal Canal

History

Construction on the canal began in 1920. On 27 October 1927, the waterway was officially opened by Queen Wilhelmina. Before the canal was dug, ships had to make a detour of about 100 km to change from Heumen to Nijmegen to reach the German hinterland; the new route shortened the trip to about 12 km.

The construction isolated the village in a hard-to-reach corner between the Meuse and the canal. The village of Neerbosch was cut in half, and the centre of the village of Hatert was torn down to make room for a bridge across the canal. The village also lost its church and both pubs.

In 1970, it was decided to widen the canal at an estimated cost of 117 million Dutch guilders (53 million euro). At around the same time, the city of Nijmegen decided to construct a new neighborhood, Dukenburg, on the western side of the canal. Less than 10 years later, another neighborhood, Lindenholt, was added in the area where the older part of Neerbosch had been. This left the canal lying largely inside the built-up area of Nijmegen.

Water level

Although the canal is located entirely in Gelderland, the management is in the hands of Rijkswaterstaat directorate Limburg. There is a lock in Weurt and another in Heumen. The latter is almost always open, because the water of the Maas at Heumen is maintained at a constant level through a weir in Grave.

In 2007 and 2008 several bridges were jacked up by 25 to, so that the water level in the channel could be increased. This allowed container ships with four layers of containers to use the canal. Raising the water level in the canal will lead to higher groundwater levels in areas directly adjacent to the canal. Rijkswaterstaat will construct a drainage system to prevent possible negative consequences.

Bridges

From north to south, the Maas–Waal Canal is bridged by the following roads:

• Industrieweg (across the lock at Weurt)
• Neerbosscheweg (called the "Neerbossche Brug")
• Graafseweg (called the "Graafse Brug")
• New Dukenburgseweg (called the "Dukenburgse Brug")
• Hatertseweg (called the "Hatertse Brug")
• Blankenbergseweg (called "the Hoge Brug")
• Jan J. Luden Avenue (across the lock at Heumen)

Image: Les ponts du Graafseweg et du chemin de fer.jpg |Graafsebrug and railway bridge Image: Le pont du chemin de fer avec au fond des HLM de Dukenburg.jpg | Railway bridge Image: Dukenburgse brug.jpg | Dukenburg bridge Image: Maaswaalkanaalbrug.jpg | Hatertse Bridge Image: Maaswaalkanaalbord.jpg | Joining the Meuse

References

Footnotes

References

1. [https://web.archive.org/web/20070826183243/http://www2.nijmegen.nl/ondernemen/havengebied/maas-waalkanaal City of Nijmegen – Bridges over Maas–Waal Canal jacked up]