Corps signs agreement with Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development and the Red River Waterway Commission to study the deepening of the J. Bennett Johnston Waterway

VICKSBURG, Miss. – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Vicksburg District entered into a feasibility cost sharing agreement with Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (LADOTD) and the Red River Waterway Commission (RRWC) on June 11, 2024, to study the deepening of the J. Bennett Johnston (JBJ) Waterway to accommodate vessels with a 12-foot draft.

The JBJ Waterway serves as a vital conduit for affordable transportation, driving economic prosperity in the region. Connecting water routes currently maintain a depth of 12 feet. An increase in the channel depth from 9 feet to an authorized 12 feet would significantly enhance cargo capacity on barges. 

The Red River Waterway Commission is a political subdivision of the State of Louisiana created in 1965 and is the local sponsor for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) J. Bennett Johnston Waterway (Red River) Navigation Project. The RRWC boundaries include seven (7) Northwest and Central Louisiana parishes: Caddo, Bossier, Red River, Natchitoches, Grant, Rapides and Avoyelles.

The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development’s Office of Multimodal Commerce Waterways division works to continuously improve the maritime infrastructure for freight movement and economic development.

The USACE Vicksburg District is engineering solutions to the nation’s toughest challenges. The Vicksburg District encompasses a 68,000-square-mile area across portions of Mississippi, Arkansas and Louisiana that holds nine major river basins and incorporates approximately 460 miles of mainline Mississippi River levees. The Vicksburg District is engaged in hundreds of projects and employs approximately 1,100 personnel.