Chattanooga, TN – This week, Congressman Chuck Fleischmann (TN-03) visited the Chickamauga Lock and received an update on the ongoing work by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). As Chairman of Energy and Water Appropriations, Rep. Fleischmann fought to secure $237 million needed to finish work on the Chickamauga Lock.
"Work to expand, renovate, and fix the Chickamauga Lock is one of our nation's most important infrastructure projects. Once completed, the new and expanded Chickamauga Lock will be a critical economic asset for our community and the Southeast United States that will increase the flow of goods, create new jobs, and keep East Tennessee as one of the main hubs for America's inland waterways. We are seeing further evidence of the great progress the Army Corps of Engineers has completed at the Chickamauga Lock. I am proud that for the past 14 years, I have worked to fund this new Lock, which is critically important to waterway traffic, not only here in Chattanooga but up and down East Tennessee and the Tennessee Valley region from Alabama up to Knoxville," said Chairman Fleischmann.
"It was awesome to have Chairman Fleischmann here today," said Edward Belk, USACE Director of Civil Works. "Representative Fleischmann has been so helpful in getting this project funded. The Chairman's presence at today's tour, and of course also Senator Marsha Blackburn and all the delegations here, just shows how important this project is, and it puts a lot of pressure on us to deliver on the expectations that the nation has for Chickamauga Lock."
Background on the Chickamauga Lock Replacement Project
The Chickamauga Lock Replacement Project includes the design and construction of a new 110-foot by 600-foot navigation lock. The new Lock is required because of structural deficiencies resulting from the physical expansion of the concrete structure in the existing lock. Once completed, the new Chickamauga Lock will reduce commercial lockage times by 80 percent and allow nine barges to travel the Lock at one time, eight more than the current facility.
Click HEREfor Chairman Fleischmann's $237 million funding request for construction on the Chickamauga Lock that he secured in the FY24 Energy and Water Appropriations bill.
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This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://fleischmann.house.gov/media/press-releases/chairman-fleischmann-tours-chickamauga-lock-and-receives-update-on-ongoing-construction