Rotterdam waterway chaos an immediate safety concern after water taxi crash investigation

The Nieuwe Maas in the center of Rotterdam is too crowded and chaotic and requires more management and professionalization. The safety of the waterway is of immediate concern, the Dutch Safety Board (OVV) concluded in an investigation into a collision between a water taxi and a tour boat near the Erasmus Bridge on 21 July 2022.

The harbor tour boat Marco Polo collided with the water taxi MSTX21 near the Erasmus Bridge on 21 July 2022. The water taxi’s skipper and five passengers ended up in an air bubble under the capsized water taxi. They were rescued after nine minutes. One of the passengers suffered broken bones.

Sea-going vessels, inland vessels, passenger ships, pleasure boats, and water taxis all crisscross each other on the Nieuwe Maas, the OVV said. Skippers often don’t follow the rules on who can sail where and at what speed. There is also no clear legal framework to enforce compliance with the rules.

“Many passengers are transported on the Nieuwe Maas in the heart of Rotterdam every day. They must be able to trust that this happens safely,” Erica Bakkum of the OVV said. “There are all kinds of rules and procedures, but the skippers’ sailing behavior regularly deviates from them.”

The OVV urged Watertaxi Rotterdam to pay consistent attention to skippers’ sailing behavior and compliance with the rules. “You cannot change behavior with rules alone,” Bakkum said. She recommends more training for skippers and eliminating distractions. The OVV also suggests that the Nieuwe Maas’s sailing design be simplified and a clear legal framework be established to enforce compliance with the sailing rules.

“The safety of passengers on a water taxi is currently less well guaranteed,” Bakkum said, pointing out that this was one of two severe incidents with water taxis in 2022. In the other collision near Terschelling, three people died. “Two major incidents involving water taxis in a short period of time indicate how urgent the situation is.”