b'modes of transportation: aviation, rail and transit, pipelines, marine,emergency procedures, which the crew and shoreside personnel per-even manufacturers.formed in a timely and effective manner, benefiting the passengers. FOGHORN FOCUSTo those in the room whove already implemented an SMSvolun- Several more accidents followed, all of which we determined would tarilyI applaud and salute you! Thank you for your safety leadership.have benefited from an SMS:And kudos to PVA for your Flagship SMS program.The Seastreak Wall Street hit a pier in Manhattan, New YorkFor others, I know an SMS is a hard sell. Ive heard the counter ar- in 2013. guments:OursafetyrecorddoesntwarrantsuchactionItstoo expensive or too onerousIm too small of an operator. To which I We reiterated our SMS safety recommendation following oursay, widespread SMS use is how the commercial airlines achieved thisinvestigation of the 2018 fire aboard the small passenger vessel remarkable feat: There were zero deaths in commercial passenger avi- Island Lady.ation in 2020. In fact, in seven of the last 10 years, there have been no major commercial airline passenger fatalities. The number of acci-And again following the Conception accident.dents, the number of fatalities, and the fatality rate across the aviation industry also have decreased. Among other benefits, an SMS sets unambiguous procedures for each crewmember during routine and emergency operations. I dont know a The FAA requires certain airlines to develop and implement an SMStransportation mode or vehicle that wouldnt benefit from that. with four components:And what if your crew is just you? A proper SMS can and shouldA Safety Policy that outlines the methods, processes, and organi- be crafted to fit each operations risks, such as vessel routes, numberzational structure needed to support safe operations. of vessels operated, and number of passengers carried. We believe that SMS for smaller vessels and operations can be flexible.Safety Risk Management: A process to constantly identify new hazards and control the risk. An SMS is not one-size-fits-all; it should be scaled to account for the size, characteristics, methods of operation, and nature of service of the Safety Assurance: Ways to evaluate whether the desired safetyspecific vessel.outcomes are being met, such as audits.Still not convinced? Consider these potential benefits of an SMS:Safety Promotion, also known as safety culture, is a less tangibleSafe operations will cost you less due to fewer mechanical issues and but no less vitalaspect of a successful SMS.perhaps even lower insurance premiums. Better maintenance means more tripsand more revenue-generating opportunities for you. Itll For two decades, the NTSB has advocated for all passenger vessel oper- also make you a more compelling bidder for contractsyou can dif-ators to implement an SMS. This call to action has been on our Mostferentiate yourself as an operator that truly puts safety first. Then Wanted List of Transportation Safetytherestheincalculablemarketing Improvements for over a decade.benefit of an even better safety re-cordfortheentireindustry.But, On October 15, 2003, the ferry An- An SMS is not one-size- most importantly, I know you dont drew J. Barberi struck a maintenancewant a tragedy to occur on one of pier at the Staten Island Ferry termi- fits-all; it should be scaledyour vessels.nal in New York, resulting in 11 pas-senger fatalities and 70 injured. Weto account for the size,TheConceptionsthirdanniversary determined the probable cause was,characteristics, methodsis in six months. Dont wait for reg-in part, due to the failure of the Newulations.ImplementanSMSnow. York City Department of Transpor- of operation, and nature ofUse that anniversary as a deadline to tation to implement and oversee safe,conduct a safety audit, especially if effectiveoperatingproceduresforservice of the specific vessel. your vessel offers overnight accom-its ferries.modations.AndtoallPVAmem-bers: rethink the SMS issueand if In 2005, we issued a recommendationyou already have one, ensure its up to the Coast Guard to seek legislative authority to require all U.S.- to date. And let me know if you do; the victims families would appre-flag ferry operators to implement SMS. The authority was granted inciate knowing PVA members took it upon themselves to learn from 2010, but the Coast Guard didnt act.their tragedy. We then investigated a second accident involving the Andrew J. Bar- We cant talk about Conception without being reminded of another ma-beri, which struck the St. George terminal on May 8, 2010, resulting inrine mass casualty: the sinking of the El Faro cargo ship in 2015 after it three serious injuries and 47 minor injuries.sailed directly into the path of a hurricane. Thirty-three lives were lost. Between the 2003 and 2010 accidents, the New York City Depart- Its not clear whether any crewmembers were able to abandon ship. ment of Transportation Ferry Division implemented an SMS. BasedBut had anyone who was able to evacuate been equipped with a per-on differences between crew actions in the 2010 and 2003 accidents,sonal locator beacon (PLB), the device would have provided essential the NTSB concluded that the Ferry Divisions SMS provided specificinformation to focus rescue efforts and increase their chances of sur-FOGHORN 22'