Inland Shipping And Waterways : Germany

Germany has an intricate network of federal waterways with a total length of about 7,350 kilometers. Approximately 39 percent are free-flowing or controlled river sections, 38 percent are dam-controlled river sections, and 23 percent are canals. In the years since the founding of the Federal Republic, most of the waterway network in the old federal states has been widened and deepened and enlarged by new links. The vast majority of waterways in the new federal states, however, still have pre-war dimensions.

The most important waterway is the Rhine, which accounted for about two thirds of goods transported by inland shipping in 1995. The chief categories of cargo are stone and earth, mineral oil products, ores, metal waste and coal, which together represent more than 70 percent of Germany’s inland shipping volume.