Arrange transit points when restricting tourist vehicles into the old town

Bustling during rush hours, tourist vehicles with more than 16 seats are one of the causes of traffic jams in Hanoi's Old Quarter.

Many people agree with the city's plan to issue restrictive regulations, but businesses are worried about being affected.

Old town becomes… parking lot

From March 1, cars with more than 16 seats will be banned from operating on the streets of Hanoi's Old Quarter and Hoan Kiem Lake during the two time frames of 6:30 - 8:30 and 16:30 - 18:30. Buses and school buses are still allowed to operate.

A 45-seat contract car stopped to pick up passengers for dozens of minutes, blocking traffic on Nha Tho Street, Hanoi.

This decision of the Hanoi People's Committee (according to the proposal of the Department of Transport) is said to reduce traffic congestion in the Old Quarter during rush hours.

Ms. Nguyen Thuy Ha (Hang Bong, Hoan Kiem) said that from about 6am to 9am, a series of 16-45 seater tourist vehicles appeared on small streets to pick up passengers. In the afternoon, these vehicles appeared again, occupying 2/3 of the road area for people, causing traffic jams on the streets.

Mr. Nguyen Manh Hung, working on Nha Tho Street (Hoan Kiem), shared that he often witnessed 16-45 seater vehicles stopping, parking, and turning around to take tourists off, causing the vehicles behind to be stuck, causing local congestion.

According to the reporter's records from 8am to 9am, on streets such as Bat Dan, Hang Dieu, Hang Ga, Luong Ngoc Quyen, Trang Thi, Nha Tho, Dinh Liet, Gia Ngu... a series of tourist cars appeared parked on the road, encroaching on the way of other vehicles, causing traffic jams.

According to Ms. Dao Hue (Hang Bong Street), the vehicles mainly enter the city to pick up foreign tourists. They stay at hotels and motels for convenient sightseeing in the city. The time when the vehicles pick up passengers is also when restaurants open, people are crowded, so traffic jams often occur.

According to Traffic Police Team No. 1, Hanoi City Police Traffic Police Department, most of the passenger vans and limousines picking up and dropping off passengers at hotels in the Old Quarter comply with the regulations. However, the main violations are stopping and parking on the road, sometimes the vehicles are parked in long lines or many vehicles are parked parallel to pick up and drop off passengers, causing congestion, making other traffic participants upset.

Tourism businesses worry about the impact

According to the representative of Phu Ho Gia Group - owner of the 5-star hotel chain La Sinfonía Ho Dai Thuc, the company always supports the policy of reducing traffic congestion. However, before issuing restrictive regulations, the authorities need to assess the impact on the business operations of hundreds of units.

"If a restriction order is suddenly issued, this will have a huge impact on the costs and operations of businesses," Mr. Thuc said, adding that he fully supports it if the authorities come up with suitable solutions. For example, supporting electric cars to take guests to hotels during peak hours.

Similarly, a representative of a large cruise group operating in Ha Long - Lan Ha Bay said that every day the group picks up and drops off more than 400 passengers from the old town to Tuan Chau International Passenger Port (Ha Long, Quang Ninh ). The average cost of picking up and dropping off a passenger is about 80-120 thousand VND. If a vehicle with less than 16 seats has to be used for transfer, this cost will increase by 5-10 times.

According to this representative, businesses in the association all support the general policy, but the authorities need to study it carefully and have a roadmap. It is necessary to consider each street specifically, and should not make general regulations for the old quarter area.

Meanwhile, Mr. Tran Van Hien, Director of Heritage Shipping Company, said that the unit has not received official information about the proposal from the Hanoi Department of Transport. If it is applied from March 1, the business does not know how to cope.

Mr. Hien informed that he has been picking up and dropping off passengers for many years in the Old Quarter area, witnessing the actual traffic situation during rush hours in the morning and afternoon, but believes that tourist vehicles with 16 seats or more are not the cause of traffic jams.

"Before picking up or dropping off passengers, we usually announce the specific time and location, so the pick-up and drop-off only lasts about 15-30 seconds, a very short time so it hardly affects traffic," said Mr. Hien.

According to Mr. Hien, traffic jams on the roads in the old quarter during rush hour are not caused by tourist vehicles.

However, if traffic congestion is too severe and restrictions must be imposed, authorities should consider applying appropriate bans, possibly shortening the time instead of banning from 6:30 - 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 - 6:30 p.m.

Ms. Duong Thi Thanh Tam, President of the Hoan Kiem District Tourism Association, said that the association had just heard about the proposed restrictions and was very confused if the city applied them from March 1. The association is consulting with its members to make a recommendation to the authorities.

Transit points will be arranged.

Chairman of Hoan Kiem District People's Committee Pham Tuan Long informed that Hanoi's Old Quarter has an area of ​​more than 80 hectares, including 10 wards.

Faced with the current situation of tourist vehicles causing traffic jams in the Old Quarter, not only the district but also many voters have recently requested the Hanoi People's Committee to direct relevant departments, agencies and sectors to take measures to handle this situation. Therefore, it is necessary to ban contract vehicles with more than 16 seats by the hour.

Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Thi Thu Thuy, a traffic expert, said that the Old Quarter has not yet organized convenient parking lots for tourists. Traffic organization for tourist contract vehicles serving customers is still limited to punishing violating vehicles without having necessary measures to reduce the load on small streets.

Therefore, banning cars with more than 16 seats from operating in the above areas will help reduce traffic congestion, especially during rush hour.

Regarding some concerns that the above regulation may help reduce traffic congestion but will affect tourism, Mr. Nguyen Tuyen, Head of the Transport Management Department (Hanoi Department of Transport) affirmed that limiting vehicles by the hour will have accompanying solutions so as not to affect tourism goals.

"To support tourists' convenient travel, the city will arrange 4 transit points in the directions of the restricted area on Ba Trieu, Tran Nhat Duat, Phung Hung streets and Dong Xuan market area. The transit vehicles do not use fossil fuels," Mr. Tuyen informed.

Streets that restrict vehicles with more than 16 seats during the two peak hours of 6:30 - 8:30 and 16:30 - 18:30 include: Hang Giay - Dong Xuan - Hang Duong - Hang Ngang - Hang Dao - Dinh Tien Hoang; Hang Dau - Tran Nhat Duat - Nguyen Huu Huan axis back into Hanoi's Old Quarter and the streets of Ly Quoc Su, Nha Tho, Nha Chung, Quang Trung (section from Trang Thi to Nha Chung), Au Trieu, Bao Khanh, Hang Trong, Hang Hanh alley, Bao Khanh alley.

Source: https://www.baogiaothong.vn/ha-noi-bo-tri-diem-trung-chuyen-khi-han-che-xe-du-lich-vao-pho-co-19225021722512998.htm