NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS
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NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the panel responsible for the report were chosen for their special competencies and with regard for appropriate balance.
This report has been reviewed by a group other than the authors according to procedures approved by a Report Review Committee consisting of members of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine.
The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts is president of the National Academy of Sciences.
The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. William A. Wulf is interim president of the National Academy of Engineering.
The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Kenneth I. Shine is president of the Institute of Medicine.
The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the academy's purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the academy, the council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The council is administered jointly by both academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts and Dr. William A. Wulf are chairman and interim vice chairman, respectively, of the National Research Council.
The program described in this report is supported by interagency cooperative agreement No. DTMA91-94-G-00003 between the U.S. Maritime Administration of the U.S. Department of Transportation and the National Academy of Sciences. Funds were obtained from the United States Coast Guard, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the U.S. Department of Transportation Intelligent Transportation Systems Office.
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COMMITTEE ON MARITIME ADVANCED INFORMATION SYSTEMS
H. THOMAS KORNEGAY, (chair),
Port of Houston Authority, Texas
WILLIAM A. WALLACE, (vice chair),
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York
ANNE D. AYLWARD,
John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, Milton, Massachusetts
ALAN G. BARTEL,
Maersk Data USA, Inc., Morristown, New Jersey
M. EDWARD GILBERT,
Gilbert and Associates, Arlington, Virginia
WILLIAM O. GRAY,
Gray Maritime Company, Darien, Connecticut
JERROL LARRIEU,
Port of New Orleans, Louisiana
ROBERT G. MOORE,
Coastwatch, Inc., Vashon, Washington
JOHN (Jay) NIEDERHAUSER,
Puget Sound Pilots, Seattle, Washington
F.D.R. POSTHUMUS,
Sea-Land Service, Inc., Elizabeth, New Jersey
C. SCOTT ROCKHOLD,
Hughes Aircraft Company, Fullerton, California
STEVEN VALERIUS,
Hollywood Marine, Inc., Houston, Texas
E. CAMERON WILLIAMS,
Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, Georgia
RUSSELL WOODILL,
Council of American Master Mariners, Inc., Orlando, Florida
CHARLES A. ZRAKET,
NAE, Center for Science and International Affairs, Weston, Massachusetts
Federal Agency Liaisons
WILLIAM A. BERGEN,
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
FREDERICK GANJON,
U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
MICHAEL ONDER,
U.S. Department of Transportation
JOHN PISANI,
U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration
CAPT. ED ROLLISON,
U.S. Coast Guard
J. MICHAEL SOLOSSI,
U.S. Coast Guard
Staff
PETER A. JOHNSON, Senior Staff Officer
CARLA D. MOORE, Administrative Assistant
MARINE BOARD
RICHARD J. SEYMOUR (chair)
Texas A&M University, College Station, and Scripps Institution of Oceanography, La Jolla, California
BERNARD J. ABRAHAMSSON,
University of Wisconsin, Superior
JERRY A. ASPLAND,
ARCO Marine, Inc. (retired), Long Beach, California
ANNE D. AYLWARD,
John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, Milton, Massachusetts
MARK Y. BERMAN,
Amoco Corporation, Houston, Texas
BROCK B. BERNSTEIN,
EcoAnalysis, Ojai, California
JOHN W. BOYLSTON,
Argent Marine Operations, Inc., Solomons, Maryland
SARAH CHASIS,
Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc., New York, New York
CHRYSSOSTOMOS CHRYSSOSTOMIDIS,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge
BILIANA CICIN-SAIN,
University of Delaware, Newark
JAMES M. COLEMAN,
NAE, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge
BILLY L. EDGE,
Texas A&M University, College Station
MARTHA GRABOWSKI,
LeMoyne College and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Cazenovia, New York
M. ELISABETH PATÉ-CORNELL,
NAE, Stanford University, Stanford, California
DONALD W. PRITCHARD,
NAE, State University of New York at Stony Brook, Severna Park, Maryland
STEPHANIE R. THORNTON,
El Cerrito, California
KARL K. TUREKIAN,
NAS, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut
ROD VULOVIC,
Sea-Land Service, Inc., Elizabeth, New Jersey
E.G. “SKIP” WARD,
Shell Offshore, Inc., Houston, Texas
ALAN G. YOUNG,
Fugro-McClelland BV, Houston, Texas
Staff
CHARLES A. BOOKMAN, Director
DONALD W. PERKINS, Associate Director
DORIS C. HOLMES, Staff Associate
Preface
The nation's ports are economic engines. Most U.S. overseas trade (by weight) moves by water. Waterborne trade directly shapes local and regional economies and contributes substantially to the national economy. The movement of goods depends in large part on safe and efficient vessel transits through the nation's ports and navigation channels. Safety and efficiency, in turn, depend on the availability of timely and accurate information about vessel traffic and navigation conditions.
Improvements in the safety and efficiency of U.S. ports and waterways are necessary for a variety of reasons, including the demands of growing international trade, the trend toward larger ships and faster loading and off-loading operations, the presence of oil and hazardous cargo in congested and heavily populated areas, and public concerns about maritime accidents that can cause environmental damage.
One way improvements in navigation safety and efficiency can be realized is through investments in advanced maritime information systems. Examples include systems that provide real-time information on weather, water levels, currents, and wind; electronic charts; satellite-based precision navigation systems; and vessel traffic services (VTS). Some of these systems are already available in U.S. ports and waterways, but there are gaps in deployment that need to be addressed.
A number of federal agencies share responsibilities for maintaining safe and efficient ports and waterways. To help them make decisions about implementing advanced maritime information systems, the U.S. Coast Guard, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the Maritime Administration (MARAD) asked the National Research Council (NRC) to conduct a study. A committee was convened under the auspices of the Marine Board to examine the implementation of advanced information systems to improve the safety and efficiency of waterways, transits, and maritime commerce.
The tasks assigned to the Committee on Maritime Advanced Information Systems include:
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assessing the state of practice of the applications of advanced information systems
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setting forth a vision for enhancing safe and efficient transits of waterways and maritime commerce through the application of advanced information systems and their impact on organizations and people
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analyzing the role of technology in achieving that vision
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identifying and assessing concerns in the development and utilization of advanced information systems
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evaluating alternatives for addressing the issues
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recommending improvements
SCOPE OF THE INTERIM REPORT
Although the overall study will address the role of advanced information systems in promoting safe and efficient maritime commerce, the present interim report evaluates the implementation of navigation information systems, principally VTS and privately operated VTS-like systems. One reason for the present report is the imminent implementation of Coast Guard plans for a major new acquisition program, VTS-2000, under which VTS systems would be installed in as many as 17 ports.
This report focuses on the following topics related to the next generation of VTS systems:
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appropriate roles for the public and private sectors
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the need for new or improved waterways management services
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the feasibility and implementation of VTS and other services
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the identification of beneficiaries of these services
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available funding methods
Needs and conditions at U.S. ports and waterways vary greatly, making it difficult to generalize about them. This report identifies the common characteristics of ports, in terms of the need for navigation services, but also emphasizes the importance of maintaining flexibility for meeting local requirements.
HOW THE STUDY WAS CONDUCTED
A 14-member committee was convened. Members were selected for their scientific, technical, economic, policy, and practical expertise for evaluating the needs of U.S. ports and waterways and making recommendations for meeting future needs. The committee includes users of marine information systems, developers of technologies and systems, information architecture specialists, individuals with expertise in keys sectors of the maritime industry, and other stakeholders in port operations. Biographies of committee members are provided in Appendix A . The committee's work was facilitated by liaisons from the sponsoring agencies, the Marine Board, and the NRC Transportation Research Board.
The full committee met four times prior to finalizing the present interim report. The study began in October 1995 with briefings from the sponsoring agencies. The committee then organized itself into five work groups to address various issues: information mapping, implementation of navigation systems, outreach, foreign ports, and state of the art. Each work group prepared a plan of action for assembling necessary information and drafting sections of the report. In addition, the committee commissioned papers on the following topics: a search of the literature on VTS, a structure for information mapping, a review of the implementation of navigation systems, and an analysis of VTS costs and user fees.
The work group studying foreign ports visited three major ports in the United Kingdom and northern Europe, investigating the VTS systems and related institutional issues. The group also developed a questionnaire, which was sent to authorities prior to the visits. The purpose of the trip was to derive lessons for the implementation or enhancement of VTS systems in the United States.
The outreach work group conducted three workshops at key locations on the east, west, and Gulf of Mexico coasts of the United States to solicit information and the views of local stakeholders. A total of approximately 120 participants from at least 10 major port areas attended these workshops. Presentations by expert panels were followed by general discussions and question-and-answer sessions. Approximately 40 participants actively contributed to these sessions, and many provided written comments to the committee.
The full committee or subgroups of the committee visited several U.S. ports, including New York, Los Angeles/Long Beach, San Francisco, New Orleans, Tampa, and Delaware Bay. Committee members inspected a variety of VTS and VTS-like systems in operation at these locations and interviewed representatives of local interested parties. The committee also solicited written comments from vessel masters concerning their experiences with VTS systems around the world.
This report presents the results of the committee's work to date. The final report will incorporate further analyses, broaden the scope to cover additional advanced maritime information systems, and address issues concerning technical aspects and implementation in greater depth.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The committee greatly appreciates the assistance of many individuals during the initial phase of this study. The liaisons, Ed Rollison and Mike Sollosi of the Coast Guard, John Pisani of MARAD, Fred Ganjon of NOAA, William Bergen of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and Michael Onder of DOT, were especially helpful. Special thanks are also extended to the dozens of individuals who participated in the outreach workshops (their names are listed in Appendix B ). The committee also wishes to thank cooperating organizations at the ports visited and guests who made presentations at committee meetings held in Washington, D.C., Long Beach, California and Tampa, Florida. Lists of these groups and individuals are included in Appendix B .