The project will examine whether good berth recommendations can be made on the basis of voyage data and ship characteristics. It will also evaluate whether the skipper rates this berth recommendation positively. The test will last until the end of January 2020 and will involve 500 ship visits. If the test results are positive, this recommendation could become a permanent function within RiverGuide and other voyage planners.

Capacity for around 500 ships
Inland vessels visiting the port of Rotterdam sometimes have to allow for a waiting time before they can call at a terminal and then look for a berth. There are approximately 150 locations throughout the port of Rotterdam with a combined capacity for around 500 vessels. For a few years now, the Binnenvaart Ligplaatsen Informatie Systeem "BLIS" (Inland Waterways Information System for Berths) has provided online information on whether berths are free or occupied. This function is also part of the RiverGuide app.

Increasing efficiency
Practice has shown that skippers regularly have to look for a new berth because the public berths they prefer are occupied when they arrive or do not correspond to their ship's characteristics (e.g. the use of cones if there are hazardous substances on board). It has also been found that skippers do not always use the mooring function of BLIS. At the same time, we see that in some areas of the port there are hardly any free berths, while in other places there is still sufficient capacity available. This causes unnecessary traffic and is therefore inefficient. With the test, the Port Authority hopes to be able to better support inland vessels calling at the port of Rotterdam by making recommendations that are as 'tailor-made' as possible.