Trade · 6 pages · 12 min
Why the Panama Canal sells a shortcut
The canal sells a passage across the isthmus instead of the long route around the southern capes.
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From the opening
The Panama Canal connects the Atlantic and Pacific across a narrow isthmus, so a ship can change oceans without sailing around the southern end of the Americas. What the canal sells is that shorter passage, rationed by locks, draft, and a toll for the transit. The opening covers the isthmus replaces the long route, locks limit which hulls fit, and tolls price the shorter passage.
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Inside
- The isthmus replaces the long route
- Locks limit which hulls fit
- Tolls price the shorter passage
- Lake water sets the draft
- Where the idea stops applying
- A distinction worth keeping
Sources
- Panama Canal lock transit
- Cape Horn alternative route