1. Application of Maritime Traffic Safety Law and Port Regulations Law Japanese laws to ensure safe ship traffic are provided for in the Law for Preventing Collisions at Sea, which prescribes basic maritime traffic rules, and in the following two laws.
(1) Maritime Traffic Safety Law
The basic traffic rules of the Law for Preventing Collisions at Sea alone cannot adequately ensure the safety of ship traffic in the three areas heavily congested with ship traffic, that is, Tokyo Bay, Ise Bay and the Seto Inland Sea. Therefore, the Maritime Traffic Safety Law was enacted as a special law appended to the Law for Preventing Collisions at Sea.
The Maritime Traffic Safety Law established 11 routes in narrow waterways with heavy ship traffic, such as the Uraga Channel. It stipulates special traffic rules, such as route navigation obligations and speed systems. In addition, it regulates the flow of ship traffic by controlling the passage of large ships, ship carrying dangerous cargo, and other ships requiring special attention, and also regulates and otherwise controls construction and other work that require that ship traffic be protected from danger.
(2) Port Regulations Law
Within ports and harbors, where numerous ships incessantly pass in and out of a confined sea area and which furthermore are where ships dock and cargo is handled, there is a high incidence of accidents. In addition, once an accident occurs, it has a great possibility of having an enormous impact on ship traffic, cargo handling and other work operations. Therefore, the Port Regulations Law was enacted as a special law appended to the Law for Preventing Collisions at Sea. The Port Regulations Law applies to 503 ports and harbors (as of May 1996) where many ships enter and depart. Along with prescribing special traffic rules, it regulates construction, work operations, fishing, and other activities within such ports and harbors.
Furthermore, it designates 85 ports and harbors (as of May 1996) where an especially large number of ships enter and depart, such as the Keihin, Nagoya, Osaka, Kobe, and Kanmon Ports, as special ports and harbors, and appoints harbor masters to them.
In addition to the above regulations, special ports and harbors implement measures stipulated to keep them informed about ships' movements, such as entrance and departure notifications and designation of anchorages. The harbor master regulates passage within
