Vessel Navigation and Traffic Services for Safe and Efficient Ports and Waterways: Interim Report (1996)

This appendix provides background on the two most prominent privately supported vessel traffic information services (VTIS) to supplement the descriptions in Chapter 2 and Chapter 3 of the report. The two systems cover the ports of Los Angeles/Long Beach and the Delaware Bay and River.

The Los Angeles-Long Beach (LA/LB) harbor complex is one of the busiest ports in the nation in terms of numbers of vessel calls and amounts of cargo handled. The port complex lies along the northern shoreline of San Pedro Bay, with the harbor area protected from the open sea by a long breakwater. There are two relatively narrow openings in the breakwater to allow deep-draft ships access to the harbor and port area. The LA/LB port community has long been concerned about the safe movement of vessels in heavy congestion, a concern that may have originated prior to 1960, when the harbor was home port to a significant portion of the U.S. Pacific Fleet.

The VTIS is a cooperative effort by the nonprofit Marine Exchange of Los Angeles-Long Beach, Incorporated, the state of California, and the U.S. Coast Guard. VTIS is staffed jointly by Marine Exchange employees and Coast Guard personnel. The goal of the VTIS is to “improve vessel transit safety by providing vessels with advanced information of other reported marine traffic and any additional information which may affect traffic safety within the area covered by the VTIS ” (Marine Exchange of Los Angeles-Long Beach, 1994). The operation is supported by user fees assessed as part of the tariffs of the Ports of LA/LB, and the VTIS reimburses the Coast Guard for the cost of staff.

The VTIS area of responsibility (AOR) lies seaward of the breakwater and extends approximately 20 miles offshore. Much of the area is in international waters, beyond the jurisdiction of the state of California and the United States, raising an interesting legal point about mandatory vessel participation in the VTIS. Management of traffic inside the breakwater is not in the purview of the VTIS and is handled by the pilot organizations serving the two ports. The Jacobsen Pilot Service (JPS), which serves Long Beach, is a private company. The Los Angeles Pilots are public employees of the Port of Los Angeles.

The VTIS is a public-private partnership. The present organization and services evolved from a series of actions by various groups: efforts by the Marine Exchange to meet perceived local needs, steps taken by the JPS to apply technology to its commercial functions, and actions by both state and federal governments.

The Marine Exchange has been handling maritime information affecting the LA/LB region since the 1920s. Over the years, the information services have evolved from rudimentary communication to the sophisticated dissemination of shipping information to subscribers. In 1983, building upon its information functions, the Marine Exchange began operating a voluntary traffic information service to provide information to vessels in the main approaches to LA/LB (Mizuki et al., 1989). The service was initiated in response to requests from the maritime community for improved real-time information on vessels arriving and leaving port; no government sanction or support was provided. Few resources were required to provide the basic service, and the costs were covered by the Marine Exchange information-generated revenue stream. With the passage of time, and as voluntary participation by arriving and departing vessels increased, procedures for both vessels and the information service became increasingly formalized.

In 1988, the LA/LB Marine Exchange Port and Navigation Safety Advisory Group was formed, with the goal of creating a vessel traffic management system (VTMS) for the combined ports. The group apparently was formed to meet three concerns:

• industry recognition of the significant risk of accidents in the area immediately offshore of the two breakwater entrances

• the perceived need for user input into the procedures followed by the Marine Exchange in the operation of the information service

• interest in preserving the preeminent role of the pilots organizations in the management of traffic inside the breakwater

The advisory group was composed of representatives of the tug and barge industry, dry cargo and tank vessel operators, the U.S. Navy and Coast Guard, the two port authorities, and pilots from both ports. The group proposed the development of a VTMS serving both ports and embracing a geographic area extending approximately 20 miles seaward. Three control centers were envisioned that would exchange information with vessels within their areas of responsibility. The centers were to be located at the Marine Exchange and the two pilot stations, one each in Los Angeles and Long Beach. A number of requirements and restrictions were proposed that would apply to vessels operating in specific areas. Those proposals were subsequently included in the formal regulations for the precautionary area established by the Coast Guard in 1994.

The planning process included the development of a comprehensive VTMS Users Manual, a survey of existing communications and surveillance capabilities at the Marine Exchange and the pilot stations, and the development of legislation to establish limitations on the liability derived from VTMS operations. Implementation of the plan was placed on hold after the Coast Guard announced plans to install and operate a federally funded vessel traffic service (VTS). At that point, the port industry appeared to lose interest in the private endeavor.

Jacobsen Pilot Service has been a U.S. leader in applying modern surveillance technology to the pilotage and management of vessel movements. In 1949, JPS installed a radar to track vessels approaching and leaving Long Beach. The purpose was to provide positional and traffic information to JPS pilots on board ships and to arrange the orderly dispatch and recovery of pilots. The radar also provided early detection of arriving ships and facilitated pilot boat rendezvous, particularly when visibility was reduced. Over time, the radar and display were upgraded, and a second radar was added. The system was also put to additional use as an aid to JPS pilots bringing ships to anchor. In 1992, a state-of-the-art integrated display was added.

After major oil spills in 1988 and 1989, efforts to establish vessel traffic services in many ports were redirected and brought into sharper focus. The British Columbia/Washington Task Force on Oil Spills was formed in 1988, following a major oil spill off the Washington coast. The task force was intended to investigate ways and means of preventing oil spills, review oil spill response procedures, document and assess the mechanisms for handling claims arising from oil spills, and develop coordinated contingency plans for dealing with future spills (States/British Columbia Oil Spill Task Force, 1990). Ironically, the day after the initial meeting of the task force in 1989, the Exxon Valdez ran aground in Prince William Sound, Alaska, spilling a large quantity of crude oil. Shortly thereafter, the task force membership was expanded to include representatives from California and Oregon, and the name was changed to the States/British Columbia Oil Spill Task Force. The group then became an important vehicle for preventing rather than simply responding to spills.

Task force deliberations have influenced both state and federal law. The final report (States/British Columbia Oil Spill Task Force, 1990) contained two recommendations germane to developments in LA/LB:

Recommendation 5. Upgrade vessel traffic service systems by replacing outdated equipment, eliminating gaps in coverage, increasing operator training and assignment length, and establishing mandatory participation in vessel traffic service systems in high-risk or congested areas.

Recommendation 26. Each state/province shall recognize and utilize local citizen expertise and knowledge in spill prevention and response efforts. This may include a volunteer training and coordination plan to enhance preparedness.

Task force members from California made additional recommendations applicable to the state, which were subsequently incorporated into California law. Of specific relevance for present purposes is recommendation CA-2:

Create port/harbor safety committees for the harbors of San Diego, Los Angeles/Long Beach, Port Hueneme, and for the bays of San Francisco/San Pablo/Suisun and Humbolt. Each port/harbor safety plan prepared by the committees shall include the following minimum requirements: tug boat escorts, unless they are specifically found not to be beneficial; a review of anchorage designations and sounding checks, communications systems, small vessel congestion in shipping channels, and placement and emergencies; bridge management requirements; and mechanisms to insure the harbor safety plan is regularly enforced.

In 1990, the U.S. Congress enacted the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA 90) (P.L. 101-380). Among its many provisions is a requirement that the secretary of transportation conduct a study to “determine and prioritize the United States ports and channels that are in need of new, expanded, or improved vessel traffic services.” The resulting Port Needs Study ranked LA/LB fifth of 17 ports that should receive

VTS based upon cost-benefit analyses (Maio et al., 1991). As a result of the study, the Coast Guard has announced plans to provide a “state-of-the-art” VTS for LA/LB (Request for Proposals DTCG23-94-R-AVT001).

Also in 1990, the state of California enacted the Oil Spill Prevention and Response Act, which, among other provisions, formally established the LA/LB Harbor Safety Committee (HSC) and provided the charter under which the HSC functions. Another key provision was the requirement that VTS systems be established in several California ports, including LA/LB. The California Government Code (Section 8670.21) now requires the administrator of the State Office of Oil Spill Prevention and Response (OSPR) to ensure that an adequate VTS system is provided for in LA/LB, among other ports. The code also provides that a VTS be established through state action if the federal government did not have one in place by January 1, 1993.

Historically, the pilot organizations have controlled vessel traffic inside the breakwater, while the Marine Exchange has provided information on vessel traffic in the approaches to the harbors. Vessel participation in the latter operation was voluntary. Once it became clear that federal funding for a VTS system covering the LA/LB harbor complex would not be available in the immediate future, the OSPR administrator was obligated by law to implement some measure of vessel traffic control. Under the authority of the California Government Code (Section 8670.21) and the Harbors and Navigation Code (Sections 445 through 449.5), the Marine Exchange was authorized to provide vessel traffic services for San Pedro Bay. The ongoing Marine Exchange information operation was upgraded significantly and transformed into a VTIS with mandatory vessel participation. This action was determined by the state to be the most cost-effective interim measure that would ensure a fundamental level of safety until the Coast Guard implemented a permanent VTS system.

The establishment and operation of VTIS LA/LB has been and remains a cooperative effort of the two ports, the Marine Exchange, the Coast Guard, and the OSPR, all of which have worked to gain the acceptance and support of the maritime community. The ports have endorsed the VTIS and jointly granted the Marine Exchange $750,000 (including forgiven loans) to help cover start-up costs. The state provided a low interest $1 million line of credit. The Marine Exchange is responsible for providing facilities, procuring equipment, handling maintenance, organizing operations, and reporting to the OSPR administrator and the LA/LB HSC. The Coast Guard provides expertise and actively participates in operations, exercising captain of the port authority when needed.

Under the state code (Section 8670.21[b]), the VTIS service operated by the Marine Exchange had to be planned “in consultation with” the Coast Guard. The state and the Coast Guard cooperated to obtain federal staffing, which was accomplished by assigning six unfunded Coast Guard billets to VTIS LA/LB. The cost of these billets is covered by the state, which is reimbursed by tariffs collected from participating vessels by the Marine Exchange, acting as agent for the ports.

The vessel traffic center (VTC) sits atop Point Fermin in Fort MacArthur, with a sweeping view of the AOR, which extends 20 nautical miles seaward but does not include the area inside the breakwater forming Los Angeles and Long Beach harbors. The VTC operates two radar scanners from Point Fermin. The VTC is connected to another scanner located on Pier J (operated by JPS) in the Port of Long Beach. The Coast Guard and Marine Exchange jointly developed an operations manual, as well as informational material for mariners required to communicate with the VTIS. A rigorous training program has been developed, consisting of classroom, simulator, and on-the-job training, with continual testing. Using a mix of Coast Guard and Marine Exchange personnel, the VTIS is providing essential information to traffic leaving and entering the LA/LB port complex. The VTIS also facilitates Coast Guard missions involving search and rescue operations, maritime law enforcement, and marine environmental protection.

In 1995, VTIS regulations, modeled upon the operating procedures developed by VTIS LA/LB, were codified in the California Code of Regulations (Title 14, Division 1). The Marine Exchange developed a database management system called ship harbor reporting system (SHARP), capable of generating reports of predicted arrivals, departures, berth shifts, and other information on commercial vessels in the two ports.

The VTIS is considered to be an effective means of minimizing the risk of vessel casualties and marine oil spills. It remains an interim system (as defined by the state of California) and, under current plans, it will cease operation if and when it is replaced by the Coast Guard VTS. In the meantime, efforts are under way to expand the VTIS AOR. In 1995, two southern California offshore oil terminals were placed under the purview of the LA/LB HSC. One of them, the Huntington Beach terminal, already falls within the AOR. The other terminal is in Santa Monica Bay, which is outside the present AOR. The Marine Exchange commissioned a study in 1955 to determine the operational and design requirements for extending VTIS service to cover this terminal as well. The extension of the AOR into Santa Monica Bay is awaiting legislative action and the resolution of funding issues.

Recognizing the uncertainty of federal funding for the LA/LB VTS, the OSPR is examining the possibility of expanding the VTIS to cover the entire Santa Barbara Channel. State law mandates VTS coverage of the Santa Barbara Channel, which is a sensitive environment and virtually unprotected. An initial step toward implementation of VTIS coverage of the channel may be connecting of the existing

radar scanner in El Segundo to the LA/LB VTC. It is believed that OSPR will pursue the expansion.

The question of how to manage vessel traffic inside the LA/LB breakwater is unresolved under the present arrangement. Under state law, this issue must be addressed. The current system of two managers (the pilot organizations) inside the breakwater and a third manager outside the breakwater, with systematic transfer of vessel control among the managers, is reportedly working well. However, a breakdown in communications could lead to an accident. Although the state plans no near-term changes in the interim system, the commander of the 11th Coast Guard District has recommended extending the VTIS AOR to include all of the waters of both ports.

Deep-draft vessels transiting the Delaware Bay and River must negotiate about 90 miles of narrow channels before arriving at the port complexes. Although the region is served by fixed aids to navigation and buoys, navigation when visibility is reduced is difficult at best and can result in groundings at worst. In addition, during the winter season buoys can be carried out of position by the movement of ice, and other aids can be damaged or destroyed. Local pilots recognized that a precision navigation tool, independent of visibility or on-board equipment, would assist them in the performance of their duties and also enhance the safety of navigation.

The VTIS developed by the Pilots Association for the Bay and River Delaware operates from a tower on the tip of Cape Henlopen, overlooking the entrance to Delaware Bay. The radar provides remote surveillance of the lower bay and its offshore approaches, while the tower provides visual surveillance. The VTIS is equipped with two automatic radar plotting aids capable of tracking multiple targets; long-range very-high-frequency (VHF) radios capable of communicating with vessels along the 115 miles of pilotage waters on the bay and river; a computerized vessel logging system capable of storing vessel information; and tidal recording devices, which store and transmit information on tides. All VTIS watchstanders are licensed pilots. Apprentice pilots periodically serve in the tower as part of their VTIS training and to gain perspective on local vessel traffic.

Cooperation with the VTIS is voluntary. However, most large commercial ships, and all vessels with state pilots on board, participate. A vessel inbound for Delaware Bay may establish VHF radio contact with the VTIS watch officer, who confirms the vessel's location and estimated time of arrival. The watch officer then informs the vessel of other traffic in the area and monitors the radar, advising the master if the vessel appears to be straying off course. When a pilot boards, the watch officer passes along information such as the location and movement of other vessels. Movement along the river is monitored by VHF radio until the destination is reached.

The pilots association recently installed a computerized, shore-based vessel tracking system. This new unit allows the watch officer to track and monitor vessel movements. The unit may also interface with the computer logging system to provide information on vessels outside the radar surveillance area. The association has also purchased portable units that will enable pilots to fix vessel positions precisely through the differential global positioning system (DGPS). The portable units are described in the next section.

The operational costs of the VTIS are borne by the pilots association and recovered from pilotage fees. Annual operating costs are estimated at $500,000. Additional funding for capital expenditures has been provided through a grant from the state of Pennsylvania.

The “portable pilot” DGPS receiver units are carried on board all vessels that take on local pilots. Each unit weighs about 5.9 kilograms (13 pounds) and costs about $7,000. Major components of the system include a 12-channel global positioning system (GPS) receiver, radio-beacon interface hardware, and user interface computer software. Similar units are also being supplied to Maryland and New York pilot organizations.

The unit is capable of receiving all visible GPS satellites and does not require a clear 360º reception cone as do less capable units. The receiving antenna is connected to the bridge wing railing with a simple spring connector. The receiver is connected to a port on a 486SX active color computer. All hardware is powered from the power supply. The system requires no adjustments for differences in power supply other than selection of the appropriate adapter plug for insertion in a power receptacle.

The 12-channel receiver keeps track of the most reliable GPS signals, and the two-channel radio-beacon receiver keeps track of the best DGPS correction signal. One channel is tuned automatically to the “best” radio-beacon signal, while the second channel continuously scans preprogrammed radio-beacons in the area to ensure that the strongest DGPS correction signal is always the one used. Switching between radio-beacons is transparent to the user, as is switching between different GPS satellites. Accuracy is always within 3 meters, with significantly more accurate positioning (to within 1 meter or less) reported in actual use.

The units do not display icons, waypoints, or the coastline. The display represents the channel center line and limits and the vessel 's position in the channel. No indication is given of heading or attitude relative to the channel. At the pilot's option, track-line data can be saved in the laptop unit for later replay. Pilots are asked to turn on the recording

feature if they have trouble obtaining an accurate position. These data then can be used to debug the software. The Maryland pilot system is more sophisticated in that it displays icons (which can be selected to represent different vessel sizes) and waypoints and is integrated with electronic chart software.

Pilots using the positioning units are pleased with the system's performance (Bailey, 1995). As of late 1995, there were 25 to 30 units in use, and new ones were being delivered at the rate of 3 or 4 per month. The pilots report that DGPS reception has been reliable, with consistent accuracy to within 1 to 3 meters. The position of the antenna on the vessel seems to be a major factor in system reliability. Finding a mounting point with a full 360º clear horizon is a problem on many vessels, but when mounted on the bridge wing rail, the unit usually can “see” five or six satellites about 90 percent of the time.

Recently, several changes were made to improve the system. Primary DGPS coverage of the area is provided by the Coast Guard radio-beacon at Cape Henlopen (at the entrance to Delaware Bay), but coverage was initially spotty in the upper reaches of the waterway. Now, coverage of the upper reaches is provided by the Sandy Hook radio-beacon at the entrance to New York Harbor. The Sandy Hook site also provides redundant coverage of Delaware Bay. (The switch between beacons normally occurs when a vessel is about 80 nautical miles north of the Cape Henlopen site.) In addition, the DGPS transmission rate from the Cape Henlopen radio-beacon was recently increased from 100 to 200 bits per second, and the message system was changed to the Radio Technical Commission for Maritime Services'“Type 9” format. As a result, pilots no longer lose the signal during thunderstorms or from lightning.

Bailey, W. 1995 . GPS Crosses the Delaware . GPS World . August . 6(8) : 34

Maio, D. , R. Ricci , M. Rossetti , J. Schwenk , and T. Liu . 1991 . Port Needs Study . Report No. DOT-CG-N-01-91-1.2, three volumes, prepared by John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center . Washington, D.C. : U.S. Coast Guard .

Marine Exchange of Los Angeles-Long Beach, Inc. 1994 . Los Angeles-Long Beach Vessel Traffic Information Service Users Manual , San Pedro, California .

Mizuki, N. , H. Yamanouchi , and Y. Fujii . 1989 . Results of the Third Survey of Vessel Traffic Services in the World . Tokyo : Electronics Navigation Research Institute, Ministry of Transport .

States/British Columbia Oil Spill Task Force . 1990 . Final Report of the States/British Columbia Oil Spill Task Force . Olympia : Washington Department of Ecology .