Cruise ships can once again travel the Giudecca Channel and pass St Mark’s Square in Venice after a ban on large ships was thrown out by local authorities.
According to Seatrade Insider, further protests by the Venice Passenger Terminal (VTP) and associated businesses saw the Veneto Region Administrative Tribunal annul the decree.
Tribunal judges ruled that proper diligence had not been carried out by the authorities imposing the restrictions.
Authorities had not proposed any alternative routes for cruise ships to take and had not assessed the interests of the affected public and private sector businesses relative to the ban.
It added that real and true environmental impacts had also not been adequately evaluated.
Imposed in late 2013, the ban limited the passage of ships over 40,000GRT to five per day and restricted ships over 96,000GRT entirely (CW 07 Nov 2013).
Due to come into effect from 01 Jan 2014, the ban was intended as a measure of reducing damage to the fragile Venetian lagoon.
Throughout the period of contention and discussion, CLIAaffiliated lines complied and rerouted ships voluntarily while waiting for issues to be resolved.
Industry proponents and the VTP said it would now lobby the Italian Government for a decision on the proposed Contorta Sant’Angelo Channel, which would take 18 months to complete.
The dredging of the channel would provide an alternate route in Venice to the cruise terminal.
The Italian Infrastructure and Transportation Ministry who were responsible for the original ban said it would appeal the decision.