Passenger Boarding Bridge Planning for Cruise Operations at PortMiami

Abstract: Recognized globally as the Cruise Capital of the World, PortMiami serves as the home port to all the major cruise lines in the industry. PortMiami serves over 80 cruise ships across eight cruise terminals, with another three cruise terminals under construction. PortMiami is also in the middle of replacing the North Bulkhead, requiring new passenger boarding bridges (PBBs) to span the new offset between ships and existing terminal doors. The Port is exploring standardizing its PBBs to increase flexibility, decrease cost, and improve operations for safer and more efficient passenger movements and apron utilization. Cruise ships’ continued growth and increased operational demand have created an increased need for added versatility in passenger boarding bridge (PBB) planning and standardization.
PBBs are mobile apparatus that connect and transfer passengers between terminal buildings and cruise ships. They come in many shapes and sizes, but most are enclosed and feature mechanical elements that allow the structure to move up and down, telescope out, or traverse along the waterfront apron to line up with the ship and terminal doors. Since cruise ships don’t have standards for passenger door locations, the PBBs at PortMiami often require upgrades to accommodate changes in the ship fleet and schedule. Careful planning is necessary when selecting a PBB, which is generally custom-made to the needs of the specific terminal. Proper planning for PBB design must take into account vertical range of motion, separation requirements, cruise ship range of motion, connection details, accessibility requirements, ground clearance for vehicular access, wheel loads on dock structure, power requirements, IT connectivity, and more. Two industry trends that impact PBB operation at PortMiami are ship overhangs, such as life vessels and walkways and features on the ships, and shore power systems, which can pose safety and clearance issues. The overhangs have led to several costly upgrades to PortMiami’s PBB structures and shore power considerations have led to PPB operations impacts. Considering cruise ship trends, it is critical to account for future expansion during PBB planning to ensure each PBB at the Port can serve its intended purpose while avoiding the need for costly upgrades to modify the structure after the fact.
Addressing PBB safety during the planning phase avoids operational downtime and liability from passengers who use it. Since PBB structures carry passengers with baggage in various weather conditions and varying slopes, proper planning for PBB geometry is essential for uninterrupted operation. There is very little regulatory control to guide passenger boarding bridge design and operation practice.
This paper explores the planning process performed by the design team at PortMiami to accommodate the new North Bulkhead realignment project and standardize new PBBs at the Port. This paper also explores past retrofits required to upgrade existing facilities to accommodate new vessels at existing terminals. This paper will give readers valuable insights into the complex challenges of PBB planning, allowing design professionals, Port operators, and others in the cruise industry to understand better elements that they should consider for successful PBB procurement and its safe operation.

How does this project / topic contribute to the advancement of the industry and profession?: Passenger boarding bridges are special equipment with specific safety issues that all cruise terminal design and operations stakeholders need to understand. This paper will provide the readers with valuable insights into PortMiami’s planning process, giving them the knowledge to interface more meaningfully with specialist suppliers and explore solutions that meet more of the stakeholders’ requirements.

Does the project / topic implement new and innovative techniques, materials, technologies, and delivery methods?: Given the ever-changing nature of cruise ships and the cruise industry, the demands on PBBs continue to increase and present new challenges. Although the essentials of the systems remain the same, it is vital to strive for reliability and flexibility in favor of complexity wherever possible, mainly as multiple cruise lines with wide ranges of ship sizes are increasingly operating from shared terminals and berths. Another issue is the need to accommodate more significant vertical movement ranges while maintaining accessibility requirements.

What was the most challenging aspect of your project / topic and how did you handle it to ensure success?: Accommodating the lack of standards in cruise ship passenger door locations contributes to the biggest challenge to passenger boarding bridge planning. Wide variability in cruise ship lengths, body plans, and infrastructure overhangs further exacerbates the challenge. The best way to handle this issue is to inventory existing ship passenger doors and other relevant ship information and proactively engage with cruise lines to keep track of future ships that are in planning or construction stages to stay ahead of market trends.

Who is the target audience for this paper?: The targeted audience for this paper includes Port Planners, Cruise Terminal Designers, Port Authorities, and maritime engineers.