In recent years, the Estonian Transport Administration has been registering an increasing number of recreational vessels, including boats, jet skis and sailboats.

"If in 2020 there were over 34,000 watercraft, including recreational vessels and jet skis, this year – and the year isn't even over yet, so it's too early to make a final summary – we already have over 40,000 registered watercraft," said Rait Prits, head of the recreational vessels unit at the Transport Administration.

The growth in the number of watercraft has also been noted by the Pärnu Yacht Club, which has space for 180 recreational vessels.

"We've observed the same trend that the number of small vessels has increased over the past five years. We've also been developing and expanding our yacht club, and just two years ago we installed a new floating dock. We also have a project to add another floating dock in the next couple of years because the number of vessels is growing," said Alari Akermann, commodore of the Pärnu Yacht Club.

"When the weather is very good and calm, there are many vessels on the bay and river at the same time. That's true. And each year, there are more and more, which is something I've noticed over the past 10 years," said Taavi Holter, owner of the Pärnu Fish Taxi.

Both the Transport Administration and the Pärnu Yacht Club noted that interest in watercraft began to rise during the COVID-19 pandemic when people couldn't travel and were looking for new ways to spend their free time.

According to the Transport Administration, the increase in the number of registered watercraft has not led to a rise in violations.

"Fortunately, despite the increase in watercraft registrations and the growing number of recreational craft operators, we cannot say that the situation has gotten out of hand. However, we certainly still have work to do in this area," Prits added.

The police also reported that there have not been more accidents compared to previous years. In fact, they observed that activity on Pärnu Bay and the river has been quieter this summer compared to last.

"What stands out is that there are still many boat operators and owners who don't know how to navigate properly. For example, some have unregistered boats or insufficient safety equipment, such as life jackets," explained Janek Pinta, head of maritime rescue at the Pärnu Police Department.

Pinta suggested that enhancing water traffic monitoring could be considered.

"As water traffic continues to grow year by year, it means that we might need more presence on the water. With the current resources, we may no longer be able to manage in a year or two," he said.

Both the police and the Transport Administration agree that while water traffic culture has improved, there is still room for further development.

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