HOUSTON (AP) — A century ago, the Houston Ship Channel was nothing more than a bayou meandering into the Gulf of Mexico. Today, massive ocean-going vessels carrying thousands of containers zip in and out of the channel, where a barge collided with a ship over the weekend, spilling 170,000 gallons of gooey tar-like oil into the water.

Though the cause of Saturday’s crash is still under investigation, the increase in ship congestion highlights the need for more maintenance, dredging, high-tech navigation systems and other improvements to ensure safe travel through the narrow waterway. Add to this a domestic oil boom, exports of liquid natural gas, the expected expansion of the Panama Canal and the whiff of possible trade relations with Cuba and the growth takes on broad economic and safety implications.