diff --git a/src/__Libraries/StellaOps.ElkSharp/ElkEdgeChannelGutters.VerticalClearance.cs b/src/__Libraries/StellaOps.ElkSharp/ElkEdgeChannelGutters.VerticalClearance.cs
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..a0075c783
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/__Libraries/StellaOps.ElkSharp/ElkEdgeChannelGutters.VerticalClearance.cs
@@ -0,0 +1,180 @@
+namespace StellaOps.ElkSharp;
+
+/// <summary>
+/// Ensures adequate vertical (Y-axis) clearance between nodes connected by edges.
+/// The Sugiyama placement uses median-based positioning that can pack connected nodes
+/// too tightly, leaving insufficient Y-space for clean edge routing. This pass shifts
+/// nodes within their layer to create routing-viable corridors.
+///
+/// This is the Y-axis counterpart to the X-axis gutter expansion in
+/// <see cref="ElkEdgeChannelGutters.ExpandVerticalCorridorGutters"/>.
+/// </summary>
+internal static class ElkEdgeVerticalClearance
+{
+    /// <summary>
+    /// Minimum Y-clearance between source and target nodes for edges that need
+    /// orthogonal routing space. When nodes overlap or are too close vertically,
+    /// edges must route through their vertical space, causing under-node violations,
+    /// shared-lane conflicts, and short gateway hooks.
+    /// </summary>
+    private const double MinEdgeClearanceY = 12d;
+
+    internal static bool EnforceEdgeRoutingClearance(
+        Dictionary<string, ElkPositionedNode> positionedNodes,
+        IReadOnlyCollection<ElkEdge> edges,
+        IReadOnlyDictionary<string, int> layersByNodeId,
+        IReadOnlyDictionary<string, ElkNode> nodesById,
+        double nodeSpacing,
+        ElkLayoutDirection direction)
+    {
+        if (direction != ElkLayoutDirection.LeftToRight)
+        {
+            return false;
+        }
+
+        // Build layer membership for efficient within-layer adjustment.
+        var nodesByLayer = new Dictionary<int, List<string>>();
+        foreach (var (nodeId, layer) in layersByNodeId)
+        {
+            if (!positionedNodes.ContainsKey(nodeId))
+            {
+                continue;
+            }
+
+            if (!nodesByLayer.TryGetValue(layer, out var list))
+            {
+                list = [];
+                nodesByLayer[layer] = list;
+            }
+
+            list.Add(nodeId);
+        }
+
+        // Identify edges where source and target nodes have insufficient Y-clearance.
+        // This covers the root causes: 5px gap (edge/5), 8px gap (edge/25), 22px gap (edge/15),
+        // and identical Y-positions (edge/32+33 sources).
+        var adjustments = new Dictionary<string, double>(StringComparer.Ordinal);
+
+        foreach (var edge in edges)
+        {
+            if (!positionedNodes.TryGetValue(edge.SourceNodeId, out var sourceNode)
+                || !positionedNodes.TryGetValue(edge.TargetNodeId, out var targetNode))
+            {
+                continue;
+            }
+
+            // Only enforce clearance for edges crossing layers (same-layer edges
+            // have dedicated intra-layer routing).
+            var sourceLayer = layersByNodeId.GetValueOrDefault(edge.SourceNodeId, 0);
+            var targetLayer = layersByNodeId.GetValueOrDefault(edge.TargetNodeId, 0);
+            if (sourceLayer == targetLayer)
+            {
+                continue;
+            }
+
+            // Compute the Y-gap between the two nodes.
+            var sourceBottom = sourceNode.Y + sourceNode.Height;
+            var targetBottom = targetNode.Y + targetNode.Height;
+            var yGap = sourceNode.Y >= targetBottom
+                ? sourceNode.Y - targetBottom
+                : targetNode.Y >= sourceBottom
+                    ? targetNode.Y - sourceBottom
+                    : 0d; // overlapping ranges → gap = 0
+
+            // Only shift when the gap is extremely tight (< MinEdgeClearanceY).
+            // Wider gaps have adequate routing space and should not be disturbed.
+            if (yGap >= MinEdgeClearanceY)
+            {
+                continue;
+            }
+
+            // Determine which node to shift. Prefer shifting the node in the later layer
+            // to minimize cascade effects on upstream nodes.
+            var shiftNodeId = targetLayer >= sourceLayer ? edge.TargetNodeId : edge.SourceNodeId;
+            var anchorNode = targetLayer >= sourceLayer ? sourceNode : targetNode;
+            var shiftNode = positionedNodes[shiftNodeId];
+
+            // Compute required shift to create MinEdgeClearanceY gap.
+            double requiredShift;
+            if (shiftNode.Y >= anchorNode.Y)
+            {
+                // Shift node is below or at same level — push it down.
+                var currentGap = shiftNode.Y - (anchorNode.Y + anchorNode.Height);
+                requiredShift = Math.Max(0d, MinEdgeClearanceY - currentGap);
+            }
+            else
+            {
+                // Shift node is above — push it up.
+                var currentGap = anchorNode.Y - (shiftNode.Y + shiftNode.Height);
+                requiredShift = -Math.Max(0d, MinEdgeClearanceY - currentGap);
+            }
+
+            if (Math.Abs(requiredShift) < 1d)
+            {
+                continue;
+            }
+
+            // Accumulate the largest required shift per node.
+            var existing = adjustments.GetValueOrDefault(shiftNodeId);
+            if (Math.Abs(requiredShift) > Math.Abs(existing))
+            {
+                adjustments[shiftNodeId] = requiredShift;
+            }
+        }
+
+        if (adjustments.Count == 0)
+        {
+            return false;
+        }
+
+        // Apply shifts individually — no cascade. Only shift if the node
+        // won't overlap with its layer neighbors after the move.
+        var applied = false;
+        foreach (var (shiftNodeId, shift) in adjustments)
+        {
+            if (!positionedNodes.TryGetValue(shiftNodeId, out var node)
+                || !layersByNodeId.TryGetValue(shiftNodeId, out var layer))
+            {
+                continue;
+            }
+
+            var newY = node.Y + shift;
+
+            // Check that the shifted position doesn't overlap with neighbors.
+            if (nodesByLayer.TryGetValue(layer, out var layerNodes))
+            {
+                var wouldOverlap = false;
+                foreach (var neighborId in layerNodes)
+                {
+                    if (string.Equals(neighborId, shiftNodeId, StringComparison.Ordinal)
+                        || !positionedNodes.TryGetValue(neighborId, out var neighbor))
+                    {
+                        continue;
+                    }
+
+                    var newBottom = newY + node.Height;
+                    var neighborBottom = neighbor.Y + neighbor.Height;
+                    var gap = Math.Min(
+                        Math.Abs(newY - neighborBottom),
+                        Math.Abs(neighbor.Y - newBottom));
+                    if (newY < neighborBottom && neighbor.Y < newBottom && gap < nodeSpacing * 0.5)
+                    {
+                        wouldOverlap = true;
+                        break;
+                    }
+                }
+
+                if (wouldOverlap)
+                {
+                    continue;
+                }
+            }
+
+            positionedNodes[shiftNodeId] = ElkLayoutHelpers.CreatePositionedNode(
+                nodesById[shiftNodeId], node.X, newY, direction);
+            applied = true;
+        }
+
+        return applied;
+    }
+}