Question 9 RVR01 - Master of Unlimited Tonnage

The Correct Answer is C **Why option C ("avoid anchoring in areas near the termination of the scheme") is correct:** Rule 10(g) of both the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGs) and Inland Rules addresses actions within a Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS). Specifically, Rule 10(g) states that a vessel shall normally avoid anchoring in a TSS or in areas near its termination. Anchoring in these high-traffic areas, especially near the points where vessels enter or exit the scheme and cross general traffic, poses a significant danger to navigation and disrupts the orderly flow of traffic. **Why the other options are incorrect:** * **A) use the separation zone for navigating through the scheme if she is hindering other traffic due to her slower speed:** This is incorrect. Rule 10(b)(i) dictates that a vessel proceeding through a TSS shall use the appropriate traffic lane. Rule 10(c) explicitly states that a vessel shall so far as practicable **avoid navigating in the separation zone**. The separation zone is reserved primarily for emergencies, necessary crossing, or joining/leaving the scheme at the boundary, not as a slower speed bypass route. * **B) only anchor in the separation zone:** This is incorrect. Rule 10(g) mandates that vessels shall normally avoid anchoring within a TSS altogether. If anchoring is unavoidable, doing so in the separation zone is highly dangerous as it interferes with the limited necessary uses of that zone (such as crossing or joining/leaving) and potentially interferes with the management of the scheme. * **D) avoid crossing traffic lanes, but if obliged to do so, shall cross on as small an angle as is practical:** This is incorrect. Rule 10(c) states that if obliged to cross traffic lanes, a vessel shall cross **on a heading as nearly as practicable at right angles (90 degrees)** to the general direction of traffic flow. Crossing on a small angle (acute angle) maximizes the time the vessel remains exposed in the lane and is contrary to the rule's requirement for minimizing interference.