Business Notes SHIPPING

The Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway took $2 billion and twelve years to build, but even before the 234-mile-long canal opened in 1985, it became notorious as one of the biggest Government boondoggles of all time. Connecting the Tennessee River with Alabama's Tombigbee River, which empties into the Gulf of Mexico at Mobile, the waterway was intended to give commercial traffic an alternative route to the Mississippi River. But the Tennessee-Tombigbee quickly proved to be much more popular with pleasure boaters than with shippers, who prefer the Mississippi because it is deeper, wider and has fewer locks.

This summer, though, boaters accustomed to placid rides along the Tenn-Tom are complaining about the growing number of barges loaded with coal, chemicals and other freight. Since the drought has made the Mississippi more hazardous for some vessels, many shippers have turned to the Tenn-Tom, still easily navigable. Says Joe Pyne, president of Houston-based Dixie Carriers: "Without it, some companies would have shut down." In July the waterway carried 2 million tons of cargo, the first time that mark was reached in a single month. So far this year, 5.8 million tons have been hauled, vs. 4 million tons in all of 1987.

Once the drought ends, commercial traffic is likely to decrease again, but not necessarily to previous low levels. Says Pat Ross, an administrator of Tenn-Tom's Development Authority: "At least this experience will give new users a history of operating on the Tenn-Tom, and that's got to be good for our future."