Southampton: ABP to keep Solent safe during Cowes Week

ABP Southampton, the harbour authority for the Solent, is aiming to continue normal operations through the busy cruise season despite Cowes Week which will see 8,000 people and 2,000 yachts taking to the Solent this week for this year's Aberdeen Asset Management Cowes Week.

During Cowes Week each year, a team of experts at the port goes to great lengths to help ensure one of the world’s largest annual events on water goes sailing by without a hitch.

Specialist traffic-management training for Cowes Week began three months ago for ABP's 122 pilots and vessel-traffic staff, who coordinate the movements of some of the world’s largest container ships, reaching 400m long, around an excess of small yachts and leisure vessels to avoid any collisions on the water. 

Double the amount of patrol boats are currently in force to accompany large vessels visiting the port in a V-formation and guide them around the 210 race start-lines in the Solent to dock safely.

Alastair Welch, director at ABP Southampton, said: "The extra measures we put in place during Cowes Week aim to ensure continued safety for all involved whilst keeping our vital shipping lanes open.”

Captain Martin Phipps, harbour master at ABP Southampton, said: "We’re very experienced in handling huge amounts of Cowes Week traffic. We know that on the Friday fireworks night, anything from canoes and paddleboards to vast container ships will be afloat. This means we’ve worked with the Marine Police Unit and the Queen's Harbour Master in Portsmouth, to set a speed limit of 15 knots across the port's waters rather than the usual speed of 40 knots.”