Patchwork international regulations govern cargo ships like the one that toppled Baltimore bridge

The patchwork system of safety regulations pertaining to massive cargo ships like the one that toppled a major bridge in Baltimore this week can allow freight transporters to skirt oversight, critics say, making maritime shipping what one expert called “the weakest link in the transportation system.” The thousands of container ships that carry more than 80% of all goods moved around the world are governed by rules established by the International Maritime Organization in London that are enforced by the various countries where ships are based and ports across the world. “There’s no strong infrastructure for safety in maritime,” said Jim Hall, who led the National Transportation Safety Board from 1994 to 2001. “And there’s a lack of adequate oversight of what we have because the Coast Guard is essentially underfunded and doesn’t have the adequate manpower to do the many jobs it is given to do.” Former U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio of Oregon, who chaired the House Transportation Committee and tried to improve regulations for decades before leaving office last year, said the system encourages ship owners to seek out “the least-regulated place in the world and the cheapest labor that you can exploit and make money.” “The only protections we have are harbor inspections when ships come to the U.S. Roland Rexha, the secretary treasurer of the oldest maritime union in the country, the Marine Engineers’ Beneficial Association, said it takes a major disaster like the fiery train derailment in eastern Ohio last year or the panel flying off of a Boeing 737 Max plane midflight in January before the public realizes there is a problem in the transportation industries.