The canal is  long,  deep and  wide . It consists of the northern access channel of , the canal itself of  and the southern access channel of . The canal is a single lane with passing places in the Ballah By-Pass and the Great Bitter Lake. It contains no locks; seawater flows freely through the canal. In general, the canal north of the Bitter Lakes flows north in winter and south in summer. The current south of the lakes changes with the tide at Suez.