Cape Cod Canal is one of the world’s widest artificial waterways. The canal is about 500 feet (152 meters) wide. It cuts through the strip of land that joins Cape Cod to the rest of Massachusetts. The canal decreases the sea route between Boston and New York City by 70 miles (110 kilometers), and enables ships to avoid the dangerous shoals off Cape Cod. The total length of the canal is 171/2 miles (28.2 kilometers). The land cut between Cape Cod Bay on the east and Buzzards Bay on the west measures 8.6 miles (13.8 kilometers). The canal, a sea-level waterway, has no locks. Its channel (deepest part) is 32 feet (9.8 meters) deep at low water. The channel permits two-way passage of all but the largest vessels. Thousands of commercial and recreational vessels use the canal each year. The United States government owns and operates the canal toll-free.
Work on the canal began in 1909 when August Belmont, a banker, sponsored the project. It opened in 1914 as a toll waterway. The U.S. government purchased the canal in 1928 for $11,500,000, and spent $22 million deepening and widening it.
