The Amount of Cargo Transported Through the Bosphorus Increased By 40 Percent

The Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure pointed out that with the developing technology in the sea, more cargo was carried with fewer ships, and noted that there was a 16 percent increase in the amount of cargo transported through the strait in 40 years.

The Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure made a written statement about the number of strait crossings. Despite the fact that the number of ship crossings in the Bosphorus seems to be decreasing, the size and tonnage of the ships have increased in order to reduce the transportation costs in the maritime sector.

INCREASING TYPE OF DANGEROUS CARGO RISKS THROAT SAFETY

In the statement, “In 2005, 54 thousand 794 ships passed through the Bosphorus. The gross tonnage of the passing ships was 468 million 105 thousand, the net tonnage was 246 million 824 thousand, and the amount of cargo carried was 334 million 51 thousand metric tons. In 2021, while the number of ship passes was 38 thousand 551, the gross tonnage reached 631 million 921 thousand, the net tonnage reached 341 million 742 thousand and the total cargo carried reached 465 million 357 thousand metric tons.

In the statement, which stated that there was a 2005 percent increase in the amount of cargo carried compared to 40, the number of ships over 200 meters increased by 51 percent from 3 to 503 in the same period, and it was underlined that there was an increase in the type of dangerous cargo. In the statement, "The risk in terms of navigation safety increases with each passing year, with the increase in the size and tonnage of the ship, the total amount of cargo carried, the type of cargo, and the number of passages of ships of 5 meters and above, which pose a risk."