People flock back to their hometowns for the September 2nd holiday, causing traffic jams at the gateways to Ho Chi Minh City.

On August 30, the flow of vehicles on the Ho Chi Minh City - Long Thanh - Dau Giay Expressway caused a traffic jam of more than 3km on Mai Chi Tho Street, at the intersection with Vo Nguyen Giap Street. Cars were packed into 6 or 7 lanes, and many drivers had to spend more than 30 minutes just traveling 3km to reach the An Phu intersection.

Báo Sài Gòn Giải phóng•30/08/2025

Due to the large number of vehicles, the traffic police had to block the entrance to the Ho Chi Minh City - Long Thanh - Dau Giay Expressway, directing some vehicles to turn back onto Hanoi Highway to reduce pressure.

However, the traffic returning continued to conflict with the traffic from the highway, causing the congestion to spread.

In addition to this area, many other gateway routes such as Vo Chi Cong, Nguyen Thi Dinh, Hanoi Highway, National Highway 1, and National Highway 13 are also crowded with people and vehicles.

Vehicles inched along at An Phu intersection towards the Ho Chi Minh City - Long Thanh - Dau Giay expressway. Photo: QUOC HUNG

At Cat Lai ferry area, more than 3km from An Phu intersection, there was no traffic jam at the wharf but serious congestion on Nguyen Thi Dinh street, due to the large number of containers entering and leaving the port.

Mr. Nguyen Chien Thang, Director of Thanh Nien Xung Phong Ferry Management Enterprise, said that this year, during the 4-day National Day holiday , the ferry carries an average of 65,000 passengers per day, 20,000 more than usual. Currently, the port operates 320 double ferry trips per day, double the usual number with 7 ferries mobilized.

Mai Chi Tho Street towards Ho Chi Minh City - Long Thanh Expressway is seriously congested. Photo: QUOC HUNG

At Tan Son Nhat airport , from early morning of the same day, the number of vehicles increased dramatically, causing Phan Thuc Duyen, Tran Quoc Hoan, and Hoang Van Thu streets to be jammed for many hours. On average, each day during this holiday, the airport welcomed about 125,000 passengers, an increase of 6% compared to the same period last year.

The Traffic Police Department of Ho Chi Minh City Police predicts that traffic congestion will continue to be tense in the coming days due to the number of vehicles from other provinces pouring into the city; warning people to proactively update information and comply with regulations to ensure safety.

The area around the Eastern Bus Station (new and old) and Western Bus Station is also often congested due to the influx of passengers. Similarly, Saigon Station is also crowded with passengers, taxis and motorbike taxis.

From early morning, thousands of passengers checked in at Terminal T3 of Tan Son Nhat International Airport. Photo: QUOC HUNG

Faced with the above traffic jams, Ho Chi Minh City has implemented many solutions to encourage people to use public transport.

The Ho Chi Minh City Public Transport Management Center said that from September 1 to 2, people will be exempted from paying for tickets on many bus routes and metro line 1 (Ben Thanh - Suoi Tien).

Specifically, all buses operated by Phuong Trang - Futa Company, along with bus routes of Saigonbus, Vinbus and many other units will be free of charge during the 2 holidays.

Passengers can use their Mastercard or MultiPass card to “tap” at the payment device on the bus and get up to 2 free rides/day.

Vinbus routes 33, 150 and D4 will be completely free with unlimited trips.

For metro line 1, on September 2, passengers only need to use their chip-embedded citizen identification card or create an “Independent” QR code on the HCMC Metro HURC app to scan directly at the control gate and get free train rides. From August 29, the system has also put into operation 44 automatic paper ticket kiosks at all stations, supporting people to buy single-trip, daily and monthly tickets.

During the holidays, metro line 1 is expected to operate 264 trips per day, from 5am to 11pm, to increase service to people's travel needs.