Systems-Theoretic Process Analysis of Maritime Traffic Safety Management in the Gulf of Finland (Baltic Sea)

According to International Maritime Organization (IMO), the Baltic Sea Area has some of the densest maritime traffic in the world. The Baltic Sea was designated a Particularly Sensitive Sea Area (PSSA) at IMO Marine Environment Protection Committee's 53rd session in July 2005. The Mandatory Ship Reporting System in the Gulf of Finland Traffic Area (GOFREP) was established by IMO in 2003 and has been in operation since 2004. The objective of this study in progress is 1) to outline the hierarchical structure of the maritime navigation safety management system from European to ship onboard level and 2) to apply the Systems-Theoretic Process Analysis (STPA) to identify system level hazards and potentially unsafe ship speed and maneuvering control actions with respect to IMO Collision Regulations (COLREGs) Rules on ship safe speed, ship safe separation distances and the Traffic Separation Schemes requirements with the aim of evaluating the effective hazard control options to enable efficient updating of ship level situational awareness and the enforcement of safety constraints in real time.