A lighter is a type of flat-bottomed

barge A barge is typically a flat-bottomed boat, flat-bottomed vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. Original use was on inland waterways, while modern use is on both inland and ocean, marine water environments. The firs ...

used to transfer goods and passengers to and from moored ships. Lighters were traditionally unpowered and were moved and steered using long oars called "sweeps" and the motive power of water currents. They were operated by skilled workers called lightermen and were a characteristic sight in London's docks until about the 1960s, when technological changes made this form of

lightering Lightering (also called lighterage) is the process of transferring cargo between vessels of different sizes, usually between a barge ( lighter) and a bulker or oil tanker. Lightering is undertaken to reduce a vessel's draft so it can enter port fac ...

largely redundant. Unpowered lighters continue to be moved by powered tugs, however, and lighters may also now themselves be powered. The term is also used in the Lighter Aboard Ship (LASH) system. The name itself is of uncertain origin, but is believed to possibly derive from an old Dutch or German word, ''lichten'' (to lighten or unload). In Dutch and German, the words ''lichter'' or ''Leichter'' are still used for smaller ships that take over goods from larger ships. Lighters, albeit powered ones, were proposed to be used in 2007 at

Port Lincoln Port Lincoln is a city on the Lower Eyre Peninsula in the Australian states and territories of Australia, state of South Australia. Known as Galinyala by the traditional owners, the Barngarla people, it is situated on the shore of Boston Bay, ...

and Whyalla in

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

to load Capesize ships which are too big for the shallower waters close to shore.

Lighter tug

The lighter barge gave rise to the "lighter tug", a small, manoeuvrable type of harbour tug. Lighter tugs—or simply "lighters"—are designed for towing lighter barges. As such, they are smaller than traditional harbour tugs and lack the power or equipment to handle large ships.

Operations

Hong Kong

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

widely uses lighters in midstream operations where lighters transport cargo, mostly containers, between oceangoing vessels or to and from terminals. Lighters in Hong Kong are usually equipped with cranes of 40-60

tonne The tonne ( or ; symbol: t) is a unit of mass equal to 1,000 kilograms. It is a non-SI unit accepted for use with SI. It is also referred to as a metric ton in the United States to distinguish it from the non-metric units of the s ...

s capacity, and the largest ones can carry up to 300 TEU containers (empties). Lighters are usually not fitted with engines but are towed or pushed by tugboats. In 2007, midstream operators handled about 2 million TEUs and 5 million TEUs were transported as river trade cargo, which are heavily dependent on lighters.

United Kingdom

In the UK, some older lighters have been converted into houseboats (for living on the river). As they lack engine rooms and gearbox, shaft or propellers, this means maximum usage of the hull space into housespace. As they have no propulsion methods, they are towed from conversion sites to permanent or semi-permanent mooring sites. They have macerators to deal with toilet waste.

Gallery

Image:Hong Kong cargo lighter.jpg, A lighter carrying shipping containers (loaded and unloaded by the tall

derrick A derrick is a lifting device composed at minimum of one guyed mast, as in a gin pole, which may be articulated over a load by adjusting its Guy-wire, guys. Most derricks have at least two components, either a guyed mast or self-supporting tower ...

-crane on the lighter's top-deck) in Hong Kong's Victoria Harbour. Image:DA-ST-87-01750.jpeg, A US Army LACV-30 (Lighter Air Cushion Vehicle - 30 Ton) hovercraft transporting ground-support military equipment to the shore in 1986. Image:LCVP prototype.jpg, A lighter for mechanized equipment designed by A. J. Higgins in 1941 Image:Ash Lighter (YA-13) photographed in 1941.jpeg, USN Ash Lighter (YA-13) photographed in 1941 Image:COLLECTIE TROPENMUSEUM Melasse lichters liggen naast een vrachtschip op de reede van Semarang Midden-Java de lading van de lichters wordt in het vrachtschip gezogen TMnr 60011530.jpg, Several lighters beside a cargo ship's side somewhere off Java in the Dutch East Indies (present-day Indonesia), about 1925.

References