Stone-Moving Tugboat Fleet Leads New York Canal Renaissance

A landmark 2016 contract with Azzil Granite Materials sparked rapid fleet expansion for NYS Marine Highway and signaled a commercial revival on the Erie and Champlain canals.

For decades, commercial shipping on New York’s canal system had declined. Truck and rail had captured most of the freight. But the economics of moving stone — friction stone, bluestone, and aggregate — from Champlain Canal quarries to New York City’s five boroughs favored water. Azzil needed a reliable partner. NYSMH had the tugs, the crews, and the canal expertise.

“That contract changed everything,” said a company executive. “We went from three tugs and twenty employees to a fleet of nine vessels and a staff of seventy-plus. We’re now moving over 500,000 tons per season. The canals are back.”

The revival has drawn attention from policymakers and industry alike. “NYS Marine Highway is proof that commercial shipping on the canals isn’t just history — it’s the future,” said one state official. “They’ve shown that with the right operator, the system works.”