The Government wants to amend the Pilotage Act. The amendment would allow experiments with remote pilotage, where a pilot, authorised by the Finnish Transport Safety Agency (Trafi), could perform his duties from a position other than on board the vessel.
The Ministry of Transport and Communications requests opinions about the Government proposal to amend the Pilotage Act. The deadline for comments is 19 March 2018.
The proposed amendment contains provisions on the data necessary for remote pilotage and on data sharing. The aim is to allow better deployment of new technologies and data in pilotage activities. Experiences from the remote pilotage experiments will facilitate automation and digitalisation in maritime transport.
The Government proposes that remote pilotage experiments could be authorised only when they do not endanger the safety of vessel traffic or have any harmful effects on the environment or other vessel traffic. Under the current Pilotage Act, pilots must work on board the vessel.
Remote pilotage experiments would allow the testing of new technologies in actual navigation conditions. The experiments could be used to define and practice new operating models, techniques and the sharing of digital data. These would in the future allow safe pilotage even in cases where the pilot is not on board the vessel. The Government does not propose automated pilotage.
Internationally, pilotage where the pilot is not on board the vessel is referred to as remote pilotage or shore-based pilotage. However, there is no clear definition of either of these terms, and they can be used to refer to a number of ways to pilot ships from a position other than on board the vessel.
The proposal circulated for comment would promote the Government Programme objective of introducing a culture of experimentation and building a growth environment for digital business. It would also implement the new and advanced information policy in the transportation sector.
What next?
The deadline for comments on the draft bill is 19 March 2018. All organisations and private individuals can submit comments. The request of comments is available online at www.lausuntopalvelu.fi. Following the consultation round, the amendment to the Pilotage Act will be finalised at the Ministry.
All comments issued are public documents, and they will be published at www.lausuntopalvelu.fi. All those wishing to submit a comment must register and login into the service. Browsing the comments does not require registration.
Inquiries:
Katariina Vuorela, Senior Officer, tel. +358 295 34 2029, [email protected]
Olli Lehtilä, Senior Officer, tel. +358 295 34 2106, [email protected]
