The Freycinet gauge is a standard governing the dimensions of the locks

Lock (water transport)

A lock is a device for raising and lowering boats between stretches of water of different levels on river and canal waterways. The distinguishing feature of a lock is a fixed chamber in which the water level can be varied; whereas in a caisson lock, a boat lift, or on a canal inclined plane, it is...

 of some canals, put in place as a result of a law passed during the tenure of Charles de Freycinet

Charles de Freycinet

Charles Louis de Saulces de Freycinet was a French statesman and Prime Minister during the Third Republic; he belonged to the Opportunist Republicans faction. He was elected a member of the Academy of Sciences, and in 1890, the fourteen member to occupy seat the Académie française.-Early years:He...

 as prime minister of France, dating from 5 August 1879.
The law required the size of lock chambers to be increased to a length of 39 metres (128 ft), a width of 5.2 metres (17.1 ft) and a minimum water depth of 2.2 metres (7.2 ft), thus allowing 300 to 350 tonne barges to pass through.

Consequently boats and barges, such as the péniche, built to the Freycinet gauge could not exceed 38.5 metres (126.3 ft) in length, 5.05 metres (16.6 ft) in breadth and a draught of 1.8 metres (5.9 ft). Bridges and other structures built across the canals are required to provide 3.7 metres (12.1 ft) of clearance.

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries many French canals were modernised to conform to the Freycinet standard. By 2001, 5800 km (3,604 mi) of navigable waterways in France corresponded to the Freycinet gauge in 2001, accounting for 23% of water borne traffic.

European Classification

The Freycinet gauge corresponds to the European class I gauge.

European Inland Waterway Boat Classifications
Class	Capacity	Length	Width	Draught
0	Under 300 Tonne	N/A	N/A	N/A
I	300 Tonne (the péniche)	38.5 m	5.05 m	2.5 m
II	600 Tonne	50 m	6.6 m	2.5 m
III	1000 Tonne	67 m	8.2 m	2.5 m
IV	1350 Tonne	80 m	9.5 m	2.5 m
V	2000 Tonne	95 m	11.5 m	2.7 m
VI	3000 Tonne and over	N/A	N/A	N/A

External links

• The French article from which this article was translated