Active Vessel Traffic Management (AVTM) Program

Enabling safe and efficient cargo movements through the Port of Vancouver to build a more competitive, resilient, and sustainable supply chain.

The latest Learn about ongoing initiatives and recent progress in our latest program update A first for Canada Port Authorities: centralized scheduling system launches at the Port of Vancouver  The centralized scheduling system—a ship traffic management tool developed to enhance the overall safety, efficiency and reliability of goods movements at the Port of Vancouver—is now used by the port authority to coordinate the traffic of trade-enabling vessels in the Second Narrows, Burrard Inlet’s busiest waterway.  First of its kind to be implemented by a Canada Port Authority, the centralized scheduling system is a key component and deliverable of the Active Vessel Traffic Management Program. It currently enables the port authority to play an active role in sequencing the traffic of commercial ships, tugs and barges bound for six marine terminals located east of the Second Narrows rail bridge, for enhanced maritime safety and port efficiency.   Throughout this initial rollout phase, we will use the centralized scheduling system to coordinate and optimize more than a thousand ship transits every year in the Second Narrows, helping to increase cargo fluidity in this key trade area where marine and rail traffic intersect.   As the first Canada Port Authority to develop and use this type of scheduling system to manage ship traffic, the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority is paving the way towards more competitive, resilient, and sustainable port supply chains. Learn more  Stay informed Sign up for our newsletter to be notified of project updates, engagement opportunities and material Learn more about previous and upcoming opportunities to engage: portvancouver.com/avtmengagement Contact us For general inquiries about the AVTM Program, email [email protected] For inquiries related to a ship currently at anchor, fill out the anchorages online form  For inquiries related to other port activities and projects, fill out the community feedback form

What is active vessel traffic management and why is it needed? 

Active vessel traffic management refers to the set of tools, guidelines, and practices we use to prioritize and optimize the movements of commercial ships, tugs, and barges of a certain tonnage within the waters that make up the Port of Vancouver. This coordination work is crucial to ensure cargo is transported safely and sustainably in and out of the port’s confined and increasingly busy waterways and to build an efficient and resilient supply chain able to support the current and future trade activities Canadians rely on.  

As Canada’s largest port and home to 29 major terminals, the Port of Vancouver handles the most diversified range of cargo in North America: bulk (such as grains, coal, and fertilizers), containers, breakbulk (such as oversized goods and equipment), liquid bulk (such as petroleum products and cooking oils), cars, and passengers (cruise). On average, around 3,000 ships call the port every year, and with growing demand, this number is set to increase.  

With increased cargo volumes moving through the Port of Vancouver comes increased complexity and challenges in managing the efficient movement of ships, emphasizing the necessity for active vessel traffic management to help prevent conflicts between a variety of ships serving different commodity sectors, and other modes of transportation placing demand on waterways. This includes accounting for larger ships, tidal windows, and transit times to and from terminals, and competing demand.

About the Active Vessel Traffic Management Program

The Active Vessel Traffic Management (AVTM) Program is one of the supply chain optimization initiatives led by the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority. It was initiated in 2021 with the goal of helping manage current and future cargo volumes transiting through the Port of Vancouver in a safer and more efficient and sustainable manner.  

The program includes the development and implementation of a multi-part active vessel traffic management system to enable the efficient flow of goods to and from the Port of Vancouver and help reduce the environmental and social impacts—such as noise, light, and air emissions—of commercial ship traffic in the region. Fluid and efficient ship movements mean fewer ship-related disruptions to marine users, coastal communities, and the environment, as well as a more competitive and resilient supply chain.

Program partners

The AVTM Program brings together several partners, including Transport Canada, the Canadian Coast Guard and Pacific Pilotage Authority, and industry stakeholders whose collective operational experience and perspectives help inform the development of adequate ship traffic optimization tools and protocols. With many parties involved in ship movements, collaboration is key to the success of the program.

In addition to the central role industry plays in shaping the program, Indigenous groups, governments, community stakeholders, and the public also contribute to the development of program initiatives by sharing their interests and providing feedback on specific issues and solutions, such as the code of conduct for ships at anchor. We conducted three phases of engagement to date to identify opportunities to better manage the community effects of commercial ship traffic bound for the Port of Vancouver as we work to increase port efficiency. Previous and upcoming engagement opportunities are detailed here. 

Program focus areas and benefits

The AVTM Program focuses on the development of policies, practices, incentives, technologies, and data-sharing frameworks that create benefits for all stakeholders and accommodate the various types of cargo that flow through the Port of Vancouver. The program’s key components, delivered in stages to support the evolution of ship traffic management at the Port of Vancouver, include:  

Individually and collectively, the program’s initiatives provide incremental value to port users and help minimize ship-related disruptions across port and coastal communities. Program benefits include:  

Program roll out and ongoing initiatives

The various components of the AVTM Program—and their related initiatives—will be rolled out in phases, starting in 2023.

Centralized scheduling system
As a key component of active vessel traffic management, the centralized scheduling system enables the port authority to prioritize and sequence the movements of cargo ships, tugs and barges in and out of the Port of Vancouver, for enhanced maritime safety and port efficiently. Every day, the system provides the port authority with the best available tide and current data and supply chain insights, allowing us to determine optimal transit windows and schedules based on prevailing demands, needs and circumstances.  

Over time, the efficiency gained through active vessel traffic management and the use of the centralized scheduling system will increase cargo throughout capacity at the Port of Vancouver as well as the overall reliability and competitivity of our maritime supply chain. By improving ships’ turnaround times at the port, the system will also help reduce the use of commercial anchorages and associated impacts—noise, light, air pollution—on coastal communities and the environment.   

The centralized scheduling system is currently being used to manage the traffic of trade-enabling vessels transiting through the Second Narrows (Traffic Control Zone 2), Burrard Inlet’s busiest waterway. It will be extended to other traffic control zones across our jurisdiction in later phases of the program. Learn more 

Overview of traffic control zones within the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority’s jurisdictional waters:

Anchorage management  
Anchorage code of conduct—as part of our commitment to reduce the impact of ship traffic on coastal communities and the environment, we implemented the first anchorage code of conduct in Canada in February 2023. The code of conduct outlines the practices we ask ship operators anchoring at the Port of Vancouver and around the Southern Gulf Islands to follow to minimize disruptions—such as the ones caused by noise and light—and be good neighbours.   

Arrival and departure window for ships anchoring around the Southern Gulf Islands—under Transport Canada’s Interim Protocol for the Use of Southern B.C Anchorages, the port authority manages the assignment of commercial ships at 33 anchorages around the Southern Gulf Islands. Together with industry, the port authority is piloting an arrival and departure window for ships anchoring around the Southern Gulf Islands asking ship operators to prioritize arriving at or departing from these 33 anchorages between 7:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m., to limit noise disruptions from anchor lowering on nearby communities at night, subject to logistics and safety-based exceptions. This measure has the potential to improve the quality of life of Southern Gulf Islands residents who shared with us that ships arriving at or departing from one of these anchorages at night are disruptive. Based on 2022 numbers, it is estimated that more than 75 nighttime ship arrivals and departures at Southern Gulf Islands anchorages will be avoided over the course of the trial period—about a quarter of the total number of nighttime arrivals and departures recorded in the area last year.
 
Anchorage management protocol—in collaboration with industry stakeholders and supply chain partners, we are in the process of reviewing our current approach to managing anchorages at the Port of Vancouver and defining the principles of a modernized anchorage management protocol and vessel arrival framework that consider the trade levels, operational challenges, and community concerns of today and tomorrow.  
 
Alternative mooring solutions—considering community feedback, we are exploring the feasibility of using a mooring system to increase anchorage capacity at the Port of Vancouver and ease the pressure on anchorages in the Southern Gulf Islands. Assessment studies, including analyses of operational and economic feasibility for a dolphin mooring system that could be considered in and around the Vancouver harbour, are underway. 

A program building on data, experience and collaboration 

The scope of the AVTM Program was first defined by an advisory panel composed of members from the maritime and supply chain sectors and informed by the results of an option and feasibility analysis of ship traffic management conducted by the port authority in 2020, with input from industry. The following areas of opportunities for the development of an active vessel traffic management system were identified:

• Reducing inefficiencies in the gateway and associated loss of productivity or costs to users  
• Providing a safe, more fluid and consistent traffic flow  
• Enhancing cooperation between the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, Canadian Coast Guard, and Pacific Pilotage Authority given shared responsibilities in some areas  
• Using real-time information to make traffic scheduling decisions to meet existing demands and provide a responsive traffic management pattern   

To this day, industry stakeholders—terminal operators, shippers associations, tugs and barge operators, marine pilots, and more—continue to play a crucial role in helping shape and implement program initiatives. They engage in ongoing workshops and provide invaluable expertise and insight into supply chain logistics, challenges, and optimization opportunities.  

For more information 

Subscribe to the AVTM Program newsletter   
Email your program-related questions, in English or French, to [email protected]
Discover Connect+ the port authority’s suite of supply chain digitization and optimization initiatives
Download the PortVan eHub app for real-time insight into Port of Vancouver operations, including ships at anchor 
Tune in to our Breaking Bottlenecks podcast series and discover how we approach and navigate logistics, infrastructure and supply chain-related challenges

Engagement and consultation Project materials and resources