A new evaluation approach to control maritime transportation accidents: A study case at the Straits of Malacca

The Strait of Malacca (SOM) has a high vessel traffic density, making it a bustling region with a significant risk of accidents. The safety of navigation will be jeopardised as trading and the number of vessels passing through the chokepoint increase. Additionally, the attempts to maintain security and safety in the region impose significant expenses on the government. A continuous effort is crucial to sustaining these numbers at bay in the future. As a result, this research aims to evaluate the traffic situation and develop a decision-making model to reduce maritime accidents at SOM. Following that, two Multiple-Criteria Decision-Making (MCDM) techniques were employed: the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and the Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS). The proposed decision-making model will assist the Marine Department of Malaysia and other related entities to promote safety awareness.