Port of Vancouver and TC plan new system to improve vessel traffic flow

The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority has teamed up with Transport Canada and other partners to design a new collaborative system by next spring to improve marine vessel traffic flow and optimize supply chain movement through this strategic gateway.

Once implemented, the system will:

• Strengthen marine safety by reducing congestion and actively managing vessel traffic in the port’s busiest and most confined waterways.
• Improve the efficiency and reliability of the flow of goods for all supply chain partners.
• Reduce environmental impacts, including noise within Southern resident killer whale habitat, by limiting unnecessary vessel movements.
• Reduce negative social impacts (such as ambient noise and light pollution) by reducing overall anchorage usage in Southern British Columbia and by implementing a Code of Conduct for vessels at anchorage.

The collaborative plan set to be completed by March 31, 2022, will include approaches to the policies, procedures, practices, incentives, technologies, information and data-sharing required to deliver a traffic management system that creates benefits for all partners. The approach will reflect the best practices used at some of the world’s leading ports.

Consultation will be a key part of the process. The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority and Transport Canada will engage with port users, other partners, Indigenous groups, and local stakeholders in the new system’s development.

Transport Canada will arrange technical expertise, as required, and help to ensure that key objectives are met. Transport Canada will also consider any potential regulatory changes that would support the new system’s development and ensure the planned outcomes are reflected in the Ports Modernization Review that is currently under way.

Image from VFPA website