Drivers 'may' be able to stay in their vehicles on ferries in exceptional circumstances - latest from MCA

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency is to allow drivers on ferry routes to stay in their vehicles in exceptional circumstances to protect frontline services and to keep freight moving.
Operators will need to demonstrate that they have carried out rigorous risk assessments before the MCA gives its agreement.
It means that as long as there are pre-agreed mitigation measures in place, freight drivers will be able to stay with their vehicles on vehicle decks of international and domestic roll-on/roll off ferries.
The ultimate choice of how an operator protects the crew and passengers remains, currently, with the operator. 
Domestic ferry operators will be encouraged to submit a risk assessment, which will allow them to mitigate the rules of Merchant Shipping Notice (MSN) 1823 – the safety code for passenger ships - to let passengers to remain in their vehicles on board ferries.
Additionally, the MCA has agreed with its French counterpart – Affaire Maritime – guidance to cross-channel ferry operators designed to prevent the spread of COVID-19, which will protect crews and passengers.
In the worst-case scenario, it would mean that drivers of freight vehicles could stay in their cabs.
Katy Ware, Director of Maritime Safety and Standards and the UK’s Permanent Representative to the International Maritime Organisation said: ‘‘It’s important in this current situation to do all we can to protect ship’s crew and those travelling on vessels from the risk of coronavirus (COVID-19). We have taken the decision to temporarily relax a number of maritime safety regulations, including allowing freight drivers to stay with their vehicles on the vehicle decks of all roll on/roll off (RO-RO) vessels ships and car passengers can do the same on domestic passenger vessels.
“This will enable freight to keep moving and life-line passenger vessels to keep operating. All operators of passenger ferries will be expected to submit risk mitigation to us before they will be allowed to let passengers stay in their vehicles.
“Safety and welfare is always our primary concern but we are a reasonable regulator and we are living in unprecedented times. If operators can show us that they’ve got the right measures in place to keep everyone safe, then we will allow them to do this.
“We implemented this last week with the Isle of Wight Operators (Red Funnel and Wightlink). This will now be rolled out nationally at the request of individual operators. All our Marine Office teams have been briefed and the matter is now being dealt with nationwide by them.”
How are you working to protect cross-channel ferries?
We’re currently working with the flag & port-State administrations of Republic of Ireland, France, Belgium and the Netherlands to agree a common solution that will allow a risked- based approach to avoid putting crews at unnecessary risk of exposure to infection that could seriously hamper freight services. We have engaged with other flag and port-State administrations, as above, to initiate the use of the UK/French guidance as a common solution which allows a risk-based approach to be used. This would enable freight to continue to move by RO-RO ferries whilst avoiding putting crew at unnecessary risk of
What do operators have to show?
For the Domestic Ferry Fleet operators must submit a risk assessment to mitigate the provision of the safety code for passenger ships (MSN 1823), EU Directive 2009/45 and our requirements for UK Class III to VI(A) vessels, where appropriate, to allow freight drivers and passengers to remain in their vehicles onboard UK domestic ferries. Each domestic operator must submit a risk assessment to the MCA to demonstrate mitigation against these provisions.
The ultimate choice of how an operator protects their crew and passengers remains, currently, with the operator. 
Why aren’t people allowed to stay in their vehicles anyway?
Since the HERALD OF FREE ENTERPRISE disaster, passengers and freight drivers are not permitted to stay with their vehicles on enclosed vehicle decks of either type of RO-RO vessels, passenger nor freight.

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