Orange, Consilium Launch Maritime e-Platform
Orange and Consilium Launch a Fully Electronic Platform for Maritime Navigation and Communications. Solution providers Orange Business Services and Consilium are announcing the launch of Current At Sea - a bundled, flat-rate solution that enables shipping companies to move to a fully electronic platform for navigation and communications. Current At Sea essentially extends the Electronic Chart Display and Information System (ECDI) over the world’s largest MPLS-based communications network (both terrestrial and satellite). It can provide detailed, real-time information for charting voyages and the remote monitoring of ships at sea. This is the first time that VSAT and ECDI have been offered together under a monthly flat rate. Cost Savings - Voice and data communications carry no usage fee.
TSA, USCG Approve Biometric ID for Port Workers
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and the U.S. Coast Guard have taken another step toward the implementation of the Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC) by approving proposed regulations for a biometric-based identification credential for port workers. The notice of proposed rulemaking will be published in the Federal Register in the coming days and lays out specific details on the program. The public will have forty-five days to comment and four public meetings will be hosted by TSA and Coast Guard to solicit public input. • TSA would collect worker's biographic information including ten fingerprints; name; date of birth; address and phone number; alien registration number, if applicable; photo; employer; and job title.
Linking Fast Ferries into the Public Transport Network
Located along the mid coast of the Northeast U.S., New London, Conn. has long been a center for ferry transportation dating back to the early days of passenger travel via sailing schooner, steamship and rail ferries. New London's naturally sheltered, deep water harbor allowed it to develop into a major marine travel hub and established it as a major stopping point between the metropolitan areas of New York City and Boston. Confronted by an ever-growing population, an increase in highway congestion and related pollution from emissions, and continued reliance on automobile travel, New London, with its unique geographic location and accessibility to multiple modes of transport, finds itself in the transportation forefront once again.
