Streets with the same name in Ho Chi Minh City increase sharply after merger

Ho Chi Minh City has many streets with the same name, causing difficulties in management and daily life. Experts have proposed solutions, emphasizing the need to limit the impact on residents.

National Highway 1 through Binh Chanh District, Ho Chi Minh City was renamed Le Kha Phieu - Photo: NGOC KHAI

At the conference to evaluate the implementation of Decree 91/2005 on regulations for naming and renaming streets, held by the Department of Culture and Sports of Ho Chi Minh City on the afternoon of July 10, many experts proposed solutions to carefully resolve this problem, avoiding disruption to people's lives.

Urgent construction of a synchronous street name system

At the conference, Dr. Nguyen Minh Nhut, Deputy Head of the Culture and Social Committee of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Council, said that after the merger, Ho Chi Minh City is facing an urgent need to build a synchronous and convenient street name system to serve urban management.

The city has not yet released an official report on the number of streets with the same name, but before the merger, many districts had this situation, such as Nguyen Van Cu Street in District 1, District 5 and Binh Chanh District; Le Van Luong Street in District 7 and Nha Be District.

After the merger of Binh Duong and Ba Ria - Vung Tau provinces, the situation of duplicate names is expected to increase sharply. The common group of duplicate names is the duplicate names in adjacent wards and communes, such as Nguyen Van Troi and Tran Hung Dao streets appearing in the old Ho Chi Minh City and the neighboring wards of Binh Duong or the old Ba Ria - Vung Tau.

Dr. Nguyen Minh Nhut, Deputy Head of the Culture - Social Committee of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Council - Photo: PHUONG NHI

Common duplicate names are often the names of famous people, national heroes, historical places such as Nguyen Van Troi, Tran Hung Dao, Hai Ba Trung, Le Loi, Nguyen Hue... because they are prioritized by many localities.

According to Associate Professor Dr. Ha Minh Hong - Ho Chi Minh City Historical Science Association, after June 30, 2025, the new Ho Chi Minh City will still have at least 12 pairs of duplicate street names in the same old district.

For example, Phan Van Tri street is in Cho Quan ward and An Dong ward; Nguyen Thi Nho appears in both Phu Tho and Minh Phung wards; Nguyen Truong To, Khong Tu, Nguyen Khuyen... are also repeated in the old Thu Duc city.

Keep name, add address or differentiate by number

To overcome the problem of duplicate names, Associate Professor Dr. Ha Minh Hong proposed two directions: keep the current street name but include the full administrative address (for example, Chu Van An Street, Thu Duc Ward; Chu Van An Street, Tang Nhon Phu Ward), or add a serial number to distinguish (for example: Dan Chu 1 Street, Dan Chu 2 Street...).

Adding her opinion, MSc. Le Tu Cam - President of the Ho Chi Minh City Cultural Heritage Association - said that the city still has a lot of room to name new places. According to her, it is possible to exploit more relics, historical events, and unique cultural sites. If properly promoted, naming streets will contribute to making Ho Chi Minh City carry the identity of a city rich in heritage values.

Associate Professor, Dr. Ha Minh Hong - Ho Chi Minh City Historical Science Association - Photo: PHUONG NHI

Also discussing solutions, Dr. Nguyen Minh Nhut stated that changing street names needs to be carefully considered to minimize disruptions in the lives of people and businesses.

"The name change will entail a series of changes such as adjusting real estate documents, household registration, citizen identification, business registration, bank accounts, commercial contracts, GPS positioning data...", Mr. Nhut said.

Not only that, this process also incurs administrative costs, is time-consuming, requires human resources to process, and can cause psychological pressure on people when they have to change their long-term address.

Therefore, according to Mr. Nhut, it is necessary to issue clear principles, in which priority is given to renaming newly formed routes that have not yet had a deep connection with residents.

In cases where major roads must be renamed, there should be policies to support people in converting documents, free legal information correction, and at the same time, organize widespread communication so that people can promptly grasp and proactively adapt.

PHUONG NHI - KY PHONG

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/duong-trung-ten-o-tp-hcm-tang-manh-sau-sap-nhap-20250710161239853.htm