What system is used to manage vessel traffic in busy waterways?

The Vessel Traffic Service (VTS) is a system specifically designed to manage vessel traffic in busy waterways. It operates similarly to air traffic control for aviation, providing support to vessels navigating through congested areas. The VTS helps improve safety and efficiency by monitoring ship movements, providing traffic reports, and offering navigational assistance to ensure vessels operate in a coordinated manner.

By doing so, VTS plays a critical role in preventing maritime accidents, reducing the risk of collisions, and ensuring that vessels comply with navigational regulations and protocols. This service is especially essential in regions with high traffic density, where many vessels may be operating simultaneously, such as near ports, estuaries, or narrow straits.

The other choices serve different purposes: CSS generally relates to broader coastal monitoring rather than traffic management, AIS is a system for vessel identification and tracking, and MTM refers to a broader set of methods for managing marine traffic that may include but is not limited to VTS.