Recreational shipping will be welcome again on the Julianakanaal starting April 25, 2025, at 12:00 PM, between Born and Stein. Recreational users had to wait a bit longer due to finishing works.
The Julianakanaal has been dry for the past 8 months over a length of 4 km. Between Berg aan de Maas and Sluis Born, the canal has been widened and deepened to allow larger ships in the future.
Safety of Julianakanaal
After the opening of the canal on April 11, 2025, only commercial shipping was allowed to use the canal. For safety reasons, recreational shipping had to wait a bit longer. During the opening, only 1 lock was available at Sluis Born. The temporary dam at Berg aan de Maas had also not been completely removed.
On April 25, the 2nd lock will be available, and the temporary dam will be removed. This way, both commercial and recreational shipping can use the Julianakanaal again.
About the project ‘Expansion Julianakanaal’
The Julianakanaal is part of the Maasroute, an important shipping route to ports in Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands. The Maasroute has been made suitable for the so-called twin-barge push shipping (class Vb ships). These are ships 190 m long, 11.4 m wide, and with a maximum draft of 3.5 m. For this, we had to widen and deepen the Julianakanaal. This way, the Maasroute will remain a significant shipping route in the future.