Motor cruiser goes wrong way up traffic separation scheme

Tuesday 30 September 2008 11:21
Maritime And Coastguard Agency (National)




At a hearing today in Folkestone Magistrates Court, the delivery skipper of a pleasure cruiser was successfully prosecuted and fined £6,000 following an incident in the Dover Straits Traffic Separation Scheme on the 5th March 2008. A 36ft motor pleasure vessel was being delivered to a new owner based at a location on the River Crouch in Essex from Brighton. The delivery skipper for this journey was Lee Choat. Mr Choat is an experienced skipper who owns his own motor boat and holds appropriate Royal Yachting Association qualifications.

At approximately 10.40 a.m. the vessel entered the South West shipping lane in the Dover Straits Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS). Mr Choat then took the vessel in a north easterly direction against the general flow of traffic. The vessel continued in this lane for approximately 50 minutes travelling about 15 miles before exiting the South West lane and re-entering the Inshore Traffic Zone. During this period the vessel passed relatively close to three large merchant ships that were travelling in a south westerly direction.

Coastguard Officers at Dover Channel Navigation Information Service (CNIS) based at Langdon Battery made a number of unsuccessful attempts to contact the vessel by VHF radio. A passing ship was able to describe to Dover CNIS the colour and type of craft. The Coastguard aircraft was launched to identify the radar target. Having left the lane Mr Choat became aware of the aircraft activity and answered a radio call from Dover CNIS.

The Chairman of the Bench said that there were four aggravating factors in this case

1. The speed and distance of transgression

2. The experience of Mr Choat

3. It was a commercial voyage

4. A significant error in navigation

Mr Choat was then fined £6,000 plus costs of £2,084.45. In arriving at the fine they took into account his early guilty plea and co-operation with the MCA. It was also stated that if Mr Choat had not pleaded not guilty at the earliest possible opportunity then the fine would have been significantly higher.

Kaimes Beasley, Channel Navigation Information Service Manager at Dover Coastguard said.

"Mr. Choat was perfectly entitled to use the Inshore Traffic Zone for his transit from Brighton to the River Crouch. However he failed to do so and, in effect, ended up going the wrong way up the south west lane. This put himself and other users of the Traffic Separation Scheme at risk. Safety in the Dover Straits Traffic Separation Scheme is dependant on all vessels, no matter what shape size or description, closely following the requirements of rule 10 of the Colregs"