Sufficient Electronic Navigation Equipment News

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) cited inappropriate navigational procedures and equipment as the result of the 2001 grounding of the New York Fast Ferry's small passenger vessel, the Finest. NTSB listed that the probable cause of the grounding that occurred outside the channel to the Shrewsbury River, Sandy Hook Bay, N.J. was the lack of readily visible fixed navigational aids, as well as the failure of New York Fast Ferry to require the use of installed navigation equipment and to set guidelines for operations in adverse environmental conditions. On January 4, 2001, the Finest, with 258 passengers on board, was en route for the Sandy Hook Bay Marina in Highlands, N.J. after departing Manhattan.