8 simple Mistakes Navigators make while using Traffic Separation Scheme

Next time you are navigating in the Singapore Strait, just imagine if there was no traffic Separation scheme in that area. Or imagine crossing the Dover Strait without the presence of any Traffic separation zone. It would be chaos. The increase in accidents would be many folds. And you would say Hell no, it is so difficult to navigate with TSS in these areas, leave alone navigating without TSS. I could not agree more. There are 205 plus Traffic Separation Schemes adopted by the IMO which suggests that even if you have been sailing for only a couple of years, you would still have been in a TSS. But if you have not then let me clear the air right away. The purple zones and line that you see for TSS are only the imaginary lines drawn on the chart and you won't find these marked on the sea water as your chief officer might have asked you to look for. TSS makes the navigation a little easier but that also brings complacency that leads to seafarers making simple mistakes while using TSS. Don't trust me? Then hear this. In 2017 alone, there have been a number of major collisions in the TSS. One of those was the infamous collision between MSC Alexandra and the Dream II in Singapore Strait.