Voters in Panama have overwhelmingly approved a national referendum calling for the construction of a third set of locks for the Panama Canal. The tally was 78% in favor. The expansion will allow for more traffic, wider ships, and double current operating capacity. The canal will reach maximum capacity in the coming years, according to the Panama Canal Authority, and currently cannot accommodate the largest ships. The proposal to expand the canal in order to serve post-Panamax vessels has been circulating at least since the beginning of the decade, when Panama inaugurated two new cruise piers on its Caribbean coast shortly after control of the canal was transferred to Panama from the United States. In April of this year, the Canal Authority estimated that expanding the canal would take seven to eight years to complete and could become operational between fiscal years 2014 and 2015. It estimated the cost of the project at $5.25 billion.
