Vessel Traffic Management in the Era of Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships and Digitalization: Experiences in European Waters

Abstract

AbstractThe safety of navigation in approaches to harbours and along coasts has been a concern since the beginning of maritime trade approximately 2000 years ago. The ways and means for facilitating the safety and efficiency of maritime navigation have undergone a remarkable transformation from lighthouses, first established in 300–280 BC in Alexandria, Egypt, combined with the use of flag signals by ships to announce their arrival when approaching a harbour, through the use of radars for electronic monitoring combined with radio communications by ships, to the use of satellite-based automatic identification systems combined with automated digital information exchange between maritime autonomous surface ships and geographically distant shore control centres.This chapter examines vessel traffic management from an interwoven, regulatory, and technological perspective. It attempts to trace the evolution of international and European Union regulatory and organizational frameworks in response to the emerging needs of navigational safety and efficiency. In this context, essential technical jargon as key to an understanding of the topic of vessel traffic management is unpacked. Relevant work of the International Maritime Organization, International Association of Marine Aids to Navigation and Lighthouse Authorities, European Commission, and European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) is discussed. The transformative role of the European Maritime Single Window environment stands out while traversing the contribution of technological advancements in the maritime domain leading to the development of vessel traffic management system architecture and capabilities. Digitalization and automation in maritime infrastructure are explored for their influence and significance of contribution to navigational safety. The ensuing discussion highlights the role of maritime single windows and the EMSA’s SafeSeaNet as key pillars for enhanced situational awareness in European waters together with the cutting-edge approach of sea traffic management. The chapter concludes with a fascinating outlook on the vessel traffic management system of the future in the emerging context of the fourth industrial revolution driven by artificial intelligence, machine learning, and maritime autonomous surface ships.