This paper presents assumptions and process of the forming of a risk assessment model for collision between a passenger ferry departing from or approaching port of Świnoujście and a chemical tanker carrying a dangerous cargo. In order to assess navigational safety on the basis of data obtained from AIS system, were prepared probabilistic domains of ships, which made it possible to estimate number of navigational incidents as well as their spatial distribution, that consequently allowed to determine potentially dangerous areas. The next phase was formulation of a simulative model intended for the calculating of probability of collision between the ferry and chemical tanker as well as the determining of characteristic scenarios for such collision. This paper presents also an analysis of consequences of the collision with taking into consideration a damage of cargo tanks.

Context: From the perspective of marine traffic engineering, a system of port waterways is composed of a set of waterways (port areas), such as approach channels, port entrance, inner fairways (port channels, rivers, lakes), turning basins and port basins of various terminals. The sea waterway must be adjusted to the navigation of specific types of ships, characterized by length, breadth, draft and airdraft. The primary requirement for shipping in sea waterways is the safety of navigation. Each sea waterway has traffic restrictions for the ships using it. These restrictions are called conditions of sea waterway operation or conditions of ship operation in the sea waterway. Problem: There are a number of empirical, deterministic or probabilistic methods to determine the safe width of maneuvering areas on port waterways. The direct application of empirical methods to determine the conditions for the safe operation of ships on the complex waterway, such as the Świnoujście–Szczecin fairway, was impossible due to the complexity of the waterway and various restrictions on its individual parts. Method: The paper presents the assumptions and calculation procedure of a method allowing for the determination of maximum safe parameters of ships in existing complex waterways. Results: The proposed method was used in the preparation of port regulations for the dredged and widened Świnoujście–Szczecin waterway. The results of these calculations are presented as a practical application of the method. Conclusions: This article defines conditions for the safe operation of ships in complex port waterways systems and presents the methodology for determining maximum safe parameters of ships in existing complex port waterways systems.

The paper presents the results of a study on improving the safety of navigation, during maneuvers in restricted areas, with the use of an augmented virtuality navigation information display. The augmented virtuality solution has been developed by one of the authors and has been described in a previous paper. A set of simulation scenarios has been proposed to study various maneuvers with different types of ships. Models of existing areas and existing ships have been used so the study can be recreated and reevaluated with different types of interfaces. The study is focused on comparing safe maneuvering areas with different information sources used. The results showed that augmented virtuality solution can indeed decrease the safe maneuvering areas and thus increase the safety of navigation for maneuvers in restricted areas.

There are a number of empirical methods for determining the width of safe maneuvering areas for ships on waterways. These methods are relatively accurate for straight sections of waterways and less accurate for curves of the waterways. When designing waterways in detail or determining the conditions for their safe operation, more accurate methods (e.g., simulations) are used. However, such studies require relatively large expenditure involving the construction of simulation models of various vessels and water areas, and conducting a real-time simulation experiment with a sufficiently large number of maneuvers performed by highly qualified navigators (pilots, captains). This study deals with the problem of determining the width of safe maneuvering areas of ships on the bends of the waterway based on the results of simulation studies. A new empirical method was developed to determine the width of safe maneuvering areas of loaded bulk carriers passing through fairway bends under deteriorated hydro-meteorological conditions. The method was developed on the basis of a generalization of the results of many simulation experiments carried out at various stages of the Świnoujście–Szczecin fairway reconstruction and a determination of the safe operating conditions for ships passing through the fairway.