Standing on a barge cruising through the Panama Canal's Gaillard Cut, Maximiliano DePuy beams proudly. The geotechnical engineer for the Panama Canal Authority points to the 539-ft-high Gold Hill promontory on one side of the waterway, from which 75 ft of rock has been cut out since 1986. On the opposite bank looms Contractor's Hill, already reduced to 370 ft in previous work. Stabilizing the canal's landslide-prone slopes metaphorically represents protecting a precious pathway for Panama, owner of the 51.2-mile-long construction landmark since 2000, when the U.S. turned it over to the locally run Panama Canal Authority.
That "path between the seas," as historian David McCullough's epic book describes the Panama Canal, is headed for a new chapter in its colorful 88-year history as it strives to become a popular travel spot and maintain a pivotal role as a shipping and maritime nexus. A $1-billion infrastructure investment program may culminate with a final decision to build a new set of locks. Trains are set to run on a rebuilt railroad paralleling the canal, and design is under way for a second bridge over it. Private owners are overseeing expansion of major ports on either end, while Panama's public works ministry plans a light rail system to link planned real estate developments.