The focus is on three main areas, namely planning & collaboration, consolidation and digitisation.

Under the heading of "Planning & collaboration" various new functions have been developed for the Barge Traffic System (BTS) in order to make the planning process more efficient. In addition a new set of game rules (in German, in French) came into force on 2 July 2018. Efficient planning and collaboration by barge and terminal operators will give more structure and transparency in the planning process (i.e. scheduling of barge operations), thus making barge traffic smoother and faster.

New functions

• Barge operators must now react more explicitly to a status of "Still to be planned." Specifically, they must state what they wish to do with a berth request (keep the existing slot, reschedule it or cancel it).
• If there is a likelihood of a barge not arriving in the port of Antwerp on time, then you as a user can be notified by email. To do this BTS reviews all the expected calls (scheduled within the next 4 hours) and check whether AIS positions for them have been received. If no current position has been received you will be notified of this.
• It is now possible to call up the last known position of a barge, even before it has arrived in the port.

Find out more with the quick User Guide