Throughput capacity of the Volga-Baltic Waterway will double by 2020. According to the statement of the Vologda Government, this was announced by Aleksandr Davydenko, Head of Federal Marine and River Transport Agency, at the celebration dedicated to 50-year anniversary of VBW.
«Throughput capacity of the canal which has been recently increased by 20%, will be doubled by 2020. It is important not only for cargo transportation. Lots of tourists go to Russian North nowadays. I know that companies servicing foreign tourists sell tickets for 2 years in advance».
In 2014, the federal budget is to allocate over RUB 700 mln.
According to Vologda Region Governor Oleg Kuvshinov, the volume of cargoes carried by the Volga-Baltic Waterway exceeds 26 mln t. Over 8,000 cargo and passenger vessels pass the canal.
The Volga–Baltic Waterway, formerly known as the Mariinsk Canal System (Russian: Мариинская водная система), is a series of canals and rivers in Russia which link the Volga River with the Baltic Sea. Its overall length is 5,000 km.
Originally constructed in the early 19th century, the system was rebuilt for larger vessels in the 1960s, becoming a part of the United Deep Inland Waterway System of European Russia.