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Oranje Locks
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Oranje Locks
The Oranje Locks are a group of locks and other water management facilities just east of Amsterdam.
The Oranje Locks are located in the IJ Dijk, a dam which cuts through the IJ just east of Amsterdam. This dam runs from the village of Schellingwoude in the north to the eastern side of the Amsterdam–Rhine Canal in the south. The dam closes off the Inner IJ, just north of Amsterdam, from the Outer IJ, and hence from the IJsselmeer / Markermeer.
The Oranje Locks consists of the original locks called Oranje Locks and the recent Prins Willem-Alexander Lock. They regulate the water level in the North Sea Canal, and prevent brackish water from reaching the IJmeer. As it is part of the waterways of national interest, the locks are managed by Rijkswaterstaat.
The original Oranje Locks consist of three locks that are now used for recreational vessels and small commercial ships. These are traditional locks with gates that are kept closed by the water pressure. The largest has a lock chamber of 90 m by 17.50 m. The two on its sides have lock chambers of 67 m by 14 m. The two locks on the sides form a pure twin lock, i.e. two locks of the same size in the same location with the purpose of increasing the speed with which ships are serviced.
The biggest lock at the location is the Prins Willem-Alexander Lock opened in 1995. This is a lock of an innovative type, with sliding gates which use a 'hydro foot'. The hydro foot is an alternative to the wheels which normally support a sliding gate. The idea is that a 0.1 mm layer of water in the two hydro feet supports the 50 ton lock door. The lock chamber of Prins Willem-Alexander Lock is 200 m by 24 m.
Every year about 120,000 vessels use the locks. Pedestrians and cyclists can cross the IJ over the dam and locks. The dam also has two fish ladders. Just north of the locks are the first stone houses of Schellingwoude. The 23 houses were built for the engineer, the lock master, the maintenance official, and a number of workers. There is also a former post and telegraph office for skippers dating from 1909.
In the seventeenth and eighteenth century the approaches to the harbor of Amsterdam became ever shallower. This was blamed on sediment getting pushed into the Zuiderzee from the north. Most of it collected near Pampus, a shoal which became ever higher. In order to circumvent the shallows near Pampus, the Noordhollandsch Kanaal was constructed from 1820 to 1825. This ship canal connected Amsterdam to the harbor of Nieuwediep at Den Helder. The canal created an inland waterway by which ocean-going ships could reach the IJ. For quite some time, this provided Amsterdam with a suitable connection to the sea.
The Noordhollandsch Kanaal did nothing to deepen the harbor of Amsterdam. Plans to solve this by dredging were not successful. This is how the idea to construct a dam and locks in the IJ, just east of Amsterdam came up. From 1826 to 1828 the government worked on the realization of the Goudriaan Canal. This was a canal which would circumvent the Pampus shallows by digging a canal from the IJ through Waterland and Marken Island. In order to prevent the area south of the canal from silting up, a dam would be constructed through the IJ just east of the entrance of the canal. The execution of this plan was opposed by Amsterdam, because of this closure of the IJ. When Amsterdam accepted to construct the Westerdok and Oosterdok wet docks in order to get a deep water port, the Goudriaan plan was cancelled. This way Amsterdam also again got a suitable harbor for some time.
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Oranje Locks
The Oranje Locks are a group of locks and other water management facilities just east of Amsterdam.
The Oranje Locks are located in the IJ Dijk, a dam which cuts through the IJ just east of Amsterdam. This dam runs from the village of Schellingwoude in the north to the eastern side of the Amsterdam–Rhine Canal in the south. The dam closes off the Inner IJ, just north of Amsterdam, from the Outer IJ, and hence from the IJsselmeer / Markermeer.
The Oranje Locks consists of the original locks called Oranje Locks and the recent Prins Willem-Alexander Lock. They regulate the water level in the North Sea Canal, and prevent brackish water from reaching the IJmeer. As it is part of the waterways of national interest, the locks are managed by Rijkswaterstaat.
The original Oranje Locks consist of three locks that are now used for recreational vessels and small commercial ships. These are traditional locks with gates that are kept closed by the water pressure. The largest has a lock chamber of 90 m by 17.50 m. The two on its sides have lock chambers of 67 m by 14 m. The two locks on the sides form a pure twin lock, i.e. two locks of the same size in the same location with the purpose of increasing the speed with which ships are serviced.
The biggest lock at the location is the Prins Willem-Alexander Lock opened in 1995. This is a lock of an innovative type, with sliding gates which use a 'hydro foot'. The hydro foot is an alternative to the wheels which normally support a sliding gate. The idea is that a 0.1 mm layer of water in the two hydro feet supports the 50 ton lock door. The lock chamber of Prins Willem-Alexander Lock is 200 m by 24 m.
Every year about 120,000 vessels use the locks. Pedestrians and cyclists can cross the IJ over the dam and locks. The dam also has two fish ladders. Just north of the locks are the first stone houses of Schellingwoude. The 23 houses were built for the engineer, the lock master, the maintenance official, and a number of workers. There is also a former post and telegraph office for skippers dating from 1909.
In the seventeenth and eighteenth century the approaches to the harbor of Amsterdam became ever shallower. This was blamed on sediment getting pushed into the Zuiderzee from the north. Most of it collected near Pampus, a shoal which became ever higher. In order to circumvent the shallows near Pampus, the Noordhollandsch Kanaal was constructed from 1820 to 1825. This ship canal connected Amsterdam to the harbor of Nieuwediep at Den Helder. The canal created an inland waterway by which ocean-going ships could reach the IJ. For quite some time, this provided Amsterdam with a suitable connection to the sea.
The Noordhollandsch Kanaal did nothing to deepen the harbor of Amsterdam. Plans to solve this by dredging were not successful. This is how the idea to construct a dam and locks in the IJ, just east of Amsterdam came up. From 1826 to 1828 the government worked on the realization of the Goudriaan Canal. This was a canal which would circumvent the Pampus shallows by digging a canal from the IJ through Waterland and Marken Island. In order to prevent the area south of the canal from silting up, a dam would be constructed through the IJ just east of the entrance of the canal. The execution of this plan was opposed by Amsterdam, because of this closure of the IJ. When Amsterdam accepted to construct the Westerdok and Oosterdok wet docks in order to get a deep water port, the Goudriaan plan was cancelled. This way Amsterdam also again got a suitable harbor for some time.
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