Traffic flows smoothly.

On January 1, 2026, road traffic in many areas across the country was heavy but smooth.

In Hanoi , on January 1, 2026, traffic volume on the southern gateway expressways increased sharply as people continued to flock back to their hometowns for the New Year holiday. The Phap Van - Cau Gie expressway saw over 138,600 vehicles per day, a more than 60% increase compared to normal days. Due to the excessive volume of vehicles, congestion occurred at several points along the route, such as the Phap Van interchange and the Van Diem bridge area. The Hanoi - Hai Phong expressway also experienced a high volume of traffic, causing congestion at the access roads to and from the Vinh Tuy bridge. However, the electronic toll collection stations continued to operate smoothly.

In Ho Chi Minh City, on the first day of the new year, the demand for travel, tourism , and returning to hometowns increased significantly after the New Year's Eve celebrations. While some key intersections in the eastern gateway experienced congestion, expressways, intercity bus stations, and Tan Son Nhat Airport remained relatively smooth. On the morning of January 1st, the An Phu intersection experienced prolonged congestion. Long lines of vehicles stretched along Mai Chi Tho Boulevard, Dong Van Cong Road, and the access ramps to the Ho Chi Minh City - Long Thanh - Dau Giay Expressway. However, once vehicles entered the expressway, traffic flow was relatively smooth, without prolonged traffic jams. This indicates that congestion was mainly concentrated at urban intersections, where a large volume of vehicles converged at the same time.

At the new Eastern Bus Station, passenger traffic peaked from the evening of December 31, 2025, to the morning of January 1, 2026, with approximately 7,000 passengers passing through. From now until January 4, the station is expected to serve around 29,000 passengers, mainly on routes to the Southeast, Central Highlands, and South Central coastal regions. At the Western Bus Station, passenger traffic from the evening of December 31, 2025, to the evening of January 1 reached approximately 35,000. Passenger volume is projected to increase by more than 15% compared to the same period during the previous New Year's holiday.

In Lam Dong province, on the first day of the new year, traffic in the Da Lat area was relatively smooth, with no congestion on major mountain passes such as Prenn, Mimosa, and D'ran. According to a representative from Team 6, Department 6, Traffic Police Department, traffic on the expressways from Ho Chi Minh City to Khanh Hoa was quite smooth, with no congestion.

From 7:30 AM on January 1st, the first 13km section of the Van Phong - Nha Trang expressway, passing through Khanh Hoa province, officially opened for traffic, connecting with over 70km of expressways already open to traffic since April 19th, 2025. This contributes to completing the North-South expressway axis through the South Central region. Therefore, the expressway from Ho Chi Minh City to the area south of the Co Ma tunnel (east of Dak Lak province) is now fully open, with travel time from Ho Chi Minh City to this location reduced to approximately 4-5 hours.

Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha has just signed a dispatch from the Prime Minister on ensuring traffic order and safety during the 2026 New Year holiday.

The Prime Minister requested that ministries and agencies, according to their assigned functions and duties, strengthen transportation options to serve the travel needs of the people, especially public passenger transport, to connect and support convenient travel for passengers at railway stations, airports, bus stations, and ports; overcome and limit price gouging and illegal price increases to better serve the travel needs of the people and prevent traffic accidents during the Tet holiday. The police force should strengthen its personnel and resources for patrolling, controlling, and strictly handling violations of traffic safety regulations; focusing on controlling violations related to alcohol levels, speed, load limits, vehicle safety conditions, and driver safety; and paying attention to patrolling and controlling to ensure traffic safety on newly opened roads.

Ministries, departments, and localities maintain hotlines for traffic safety to receive and promptly handle public feedback during the holiday period...

On January 1st, traffic accidents and incidents occurred continuously on the Trung Luong - My Thuan and Ho Chi Minh City - Trung Luong expressways, causing traffic congestion in many sections. Specifically, at noon on the same day, a collision occurred between two cars on the Trung Luong - My Thuan expressway (at km 95, heading from Ho Chi Minh City to Can Tho). The accident caused traffic congestion in the area. The Highway Traffic Control Team No. 7 - Traffic Police Department (Ministry of Public Security) quickly deployed forces to regulate and guide vehicles onto National Highway 1 at the Cai Lay exit to avoid prolonged traffic jams.

Earlier, at approximately 0:00 on January 1st, at kilometer 24 of the Trung Luong - Ho Chi Minh City expressway (heading from the Mekong Delta to Ho Chi Minh City), a metal bar over 2 meters long appeared, blocking the road (the reason is unclear). The incident caused hundreds of cars to move slowly in a queue. At the same time, also on the Trung Luong - Ho Chi Minh City expressway (heading from Ho Chi Minh City to the Mekong Delta), a truck suffered a tire blowout. These incidents caused a prolonged traffic jam.

According to the Traffic Police Department (Ministry of Public Security), on January 1st, 49 traffic accidents occurred nationwide, resulting in 18 deaths and 41 injuries. Compared to the same day last year, there was a decrease of 24 accidents and 23 deaths. On the roads, local police checked and handled more than 10,400 violations, temporarily seized 53 vehicles, and dealt with over 2,000 cases of drunk driving.

REPORTER TEAM

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/giao-thong-thong-suot-post831694.html