To Continue or Halt the Tenn-Tom Waterway. Information to Help the Congress Resolve the Controversy

摘要

The Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway continues to generate controversy. Ten years and $1.1 billion have been spent on construction of the project, which will link the inland waterway system with the Gulf of Mexico. Project costs are estimated to total about $2 billion when the project is completed in 1988. GAO believes two key issues in the decision to halt or complete Tenn-TOM are: (1)--Although more than $600 million would be saved by halting Tenn-TOM, that saving must be weighed against the loss of about $125 million in average annual benefits expected from the completed project. Average annual benefits achieved to date are roughly $12 million. (2)--Completing Tenn-TOM will create a bottleneck on the waterway south of Demopolis, Alabama. Eliminating the bottleneck would cost about $960 million--$323 million for construction (Oct. 1979 dollars) and $637 million for inflation to the end of the estimated construction period in 1997. Continuing Tenn-TOM may be sowing the seed for this additional project.