The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Jacksonville District will change the operating hours at the five locks on the Okeechobee Waterway at the beginning of April.
The new operating hours at each of the five locks are 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., seven days a week, with last lock through starting at 4:30 p.m. The change will take effect on April 1, and affects the following locks:
• W.P. Franklin Lock near Fort Myers
• Ortona Lock near LaBelle
• Moore Haven Lock on the west side of Lake Okeechobee
• Port Mayaca Lock on the east side of Lake Okeechobee
• St. Lucie Lock near Stuart
“These changes will allow the district to reduce costly overtime while still maintaining operating hours that accommodate 95 percent of the boat traffic that passes through the locks.” said Jim Jeffords, Operations Division Chief for Jacksonville District. “We appreciate all the comments we received from the public in January and February. These changes will allow gains in efficiencies on our water transit systems.”
The change in hours doesn’t impact Canaveral Lock near Port Canaveral; it will continue to operate from 6 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. daily.
The Corps has issued a Notice to Navigation on this subject. For more information on navigation notices concerning Canaveral Lock or the Okeechobee Waterway, please visit the following website: http://www.saj.usace.army.mil/Missions/CivilWorks/Navigation/NoticestoNavigation.aspx.
-30-
Release no. 15-039