Since the trial navigation of ships on the Jianghuai Canal on August 16, 2023, up to now, the number of ship passages has exceeded 100,000 times, and it is showing a marginally increasing growth trend, with "the potential energy of shipping being released."

The Jianghuai Canal is an important part of the Yangtze-to-Huaihe Water Diversion Project, constructed as a Class II channel capable of accommodating vessels up to 2,000 tons. The canal connects the Huaihe River, Chaohu Lake, and the Yangtze River, ending the historical inefficiency of water transport between the middle Huaihe and the middle-lower Yangtze regions, thereby establishing a "golden waterway" linking the north and south. This is of great significance for improving the inland waterway transportation network not only in our province but also across the country. 

On the morning of August 16, 2023, the Jianghuai Canal section of the Yangtze-to-Huaihe Water Diversion Project's waterway commenced trial operation. 

Three days later, on August 19, 2023, the inaugural ceremony for nine container routes of the Jianghuai Canal was held simultaneously at Paihe Port in Hefei, Zhoukou Central Port, Xinyang Huaibin Port, Fuyang Yingzhou Port, and Wuhu Port in Anhui.

On March 16, 2025, the "North Gate" of the Jianghuai Canal—the Dongfei River hub double-line ship lock—was fully completed.

The Jianghuai Canal spans a total length of approximately 355 kilometers, comprising the Jianghuai transportation section and the Caizi Lake route. It connects with the ongoing construction of the Shaying River, Heyu Line, and Wushen Canal routes, collectively forming a high-quality north-south waterway over a thousand kilometers long, parallel to the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal. This not only aids Anhui in establishing a new water transportation pattern featuring "dual channels to the sea, two canals entering the river, and integrated river-river-sea transport," further amplifying Anhui's regional and strategic advantages, but also significantly enhances China's north-south inland waterway network. It opens a short, direct waterway channel between the Central Plains and the Yangtze River Delta, linking the Yangtze and Yellow River basins, thereby creating a new "sea outlet" for the Central and Northern regions.

Since its opening and operation, the traffic volume and cargo throughput of the Jianghuai Canal have steadily increased. Up to the end of May this year, a total of approximately 24,000 vessel trips have been recorded on the Jianghuai Canal, with an average daily lockage of 162 trips, a year-on-year increase of 14.1%. The total tonnage passing through the locks is close to 50 million tons, marking a year-on-year growth of 7.5%. In the first half of the year, the number of vessel passages and the tonnage of ships passing through the Jianghuai Canal accounted for 23.5% and 27.4% of the province's inland waterway traffic, respectively, demonstrating a continuous release of shipping potential. According to statistics, a 2000-ton class vessel traveling from Wuhu to the Huaihe River via the Jianghuai Canal takes only about 50 hours, saving more than 48 hours compared to bypassing the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, and reducing energy consumption by about 50% per voyage. 

Source: Anhui Daily