ABSTRACT
Granting access into port facilities without severely disrupting passenger operations, commerce, international trade, and recreational and tourist-related port business is a challenge. This chapter discusses two major components essential to comprehensive port access control: identification and credentialing, and restricted area access controls. A major dynamic affecting port vulnerability is frequency of access. Port access controls protect the port’s interface with its host city, region, or state by minimizing infiltration by criminal elements. Port identification cards represent the basic level of access control for a port to know who and what is coming onto the facility. The issuance of a photo identification credential to each person with authorized access is a key component of port access control. Identification cards should be coded such that a visual inspection of the card indicates the access authorization for the cardholder. Granting access into port facilities without severely disrupting port operations is a challenge.
