The director of Shanghai Maritime Safety Authority said in an interview on 31 July that the waterway control centre and emergency response centres for the Shanghai Expo 2010 had started operation. In addition to working closely with his counterparts in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Anhui provinces, Mr Xu Guoyi said that modern technology involving automatic identification systems, close circuit television monitor systems and live information broadcasts will be utilised to ensure safety and security of maritime transport throughout the May to October period when the Expo will be held.

The waterway between Nanpu Bridge and Chuanyang Creek will be the centre for marine transport during the event. At the moment, about 1,000 vessels pass the area every day. By the start of the Expo, 35 special ferries will be launched to take an average daily volume of 100,000 passengers in and out of the Expo. The maritime authority has planned several emergency drills and a thorough scan of the shipping channel of the Huangpu River, the final tributary of the Yangtze before it enters the sea.