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How did U.S. shipping rebates affect traffic on the St. Lawrence Seaway in the 1980s?

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Map showing the St. Lawrence hydrographic system and the five main sectors of the St. Lawrence Seaway project, stretching from Lake Ontario near Kingston through various locks, canals, and dams along the Canada-United States border to Montreal. The map highlights key locations such as the Thousand Islands, International Rapids, Lake St. Francis, Soulanges, and Lachine sections, with detailed labeling of major locks, canals, and power dams. Cross sections of the lock and canal system are depicted — St. Lawrence Seaway The St. Lawrence hydrographic system, with the five main sectors of the St. Lawrence Seaway project.

In the mid-1980s, the U.S. government implemented a policy to assume the financial obligations of the American seaway corporation. Under this arrangement, the tolls collected by the United States—which had been reduced to 15 percent of the total—were returned to users as rebates, while the federal government provided direct subsidies to the American corporation.1

These shipping rebates served as an incentive for users of the St. Lawrence Seaway. By offering these financial incentives, the policy helped to stabilize seaway traffic by the end of the decade, following a period of gradual decline in annual shipping tonnage that had begun after the 1977 peak.1