Information system for Turkish lighthouses

Considering cost and capacity factors, marine transportation has significant advantages when compared with the other transportation systems. Since Turkey has an important international sea route (Bosphorus, Sea of Marmara, Dardanelles) and a large amount of coastline (more than 8000 km), ?Marine Transportation Safety? is a crucial subject of study. Lighthouses and other navigational aids are of great importance for preventing marine accidents. In this study, a GIS (Geographical Information Systems) developed for the sailing supporters in Turkey such as lighthouses, fog signals and buoys. The information system covers a wide range of official information about lighthouses in Turkish coastline. In the study, the geographic distribution of lighthouses are displayed on a digital Turkish coastline map and stored into a database. Information from the system is used for assessing the extent, spatial distribution and pattern of the navigational aids in order to help to determine standards and procedures for navigation and maritime safety. The system shows that the spatial distribution of navigational aids from Hopa to İskenderun in our coastline, especially in Turkish straits, is well designed. One of three of our coastline?s lighthouses and floating lights exist at The Dardanelles ? Marmara and The Bosphorus coasts with busy sea traffic. The analysis that were made based on the lighthouse?s own light range show that the bad weather conditions and in the situation of some broken down lighthouses can provide risk for sailing safety in some coast regions. Keywords: Lighthouses, Navigational Aids, Marine Transportation Safety, GIS (Geographical Information Systems).