VietNamNet Bridge – Motorbikes remain a dominant means of transport in Vietnam with a staggering 40 million motorcycles registered across the country.

However, given underdeveloped road and public transport infrastructure, traffic safety is still a big headache with motorbike riders suffering most in deadly road accidents.

The Government has for years stressed the need for strict measures to contain the rapid rise in private vehicle numbers and develop public transport but no significant improvements have been made so far.

Illustrative image -- File photo

Local governments, especially in Hanoi and HCMC, have struggling to find ways to cope with ever-surging motorcycle traffic.

Hanoi’s authorities at a meeting early this week announced they are pushing for a motorbike ban in central areas as one of the main goals in a master development and modernization plan of the capital city in the next 10 years.

As reported by Tuoi Tre newspaper, the city’s leaders have set a target of capping the number of individual vehicles by 2020 to reduce congestion, with a further goal of getting rid of motorbikes in inner-city areas by 2025.

It will also focus on improving its infrastructure by building more tunnels, highways, bridges, bus stations and parking lots to contribute to reducing traffic pressure.

In the next five years, the capital is scheduled to put two urban rail lines into use, namely Ha Dong-Cat Linh and Nhon-Hanoi Station, and Nam Thang Long-Tran Hung Dao railway.

Hanoi City’s chairman Nguyen Duc Chung at the meeting said traffic in the city would worsen over the next four or five years with about one million cars and seven million motorbikes to jam the narrow streets in downtown Hanoi, excluding huge numbers of vehicles coming from nearby cities and provinces.

Hanoi’s traffic jams are also a major cause of air pollution. In March, official data showed that pollution has reached hazardous levels.

The increasingly large number of private vehicles has been blamed for air and dust pollution, so the environment there has been repeatedly ranked as “unhealthy” by the Real Time Air Quality Index.

The idea of banning motorbikes in big cities has prompted a controversy because it will affect most people in Vietnam.

Experts and citizens once again have raised concern over its feasibility as the city has yet to meet a prerequisite condition – making public transport sufficient before banning motorbikes.

Some have even criticized local government for poor preparation though the idea has come up for years.

Nguyen Xuan Thuy, an expert in urban traffic, says in Nguoi Lao Dong newspaper that it is impossible for Hanoi to reach the target in 2025.

Tiny alleys that are accessible by motorbikes only are a problem that could take a long time to fix.

Meanwhile, public transport only meets 8-10% of transport demand of local residents at present. If the ban is enforced, around 80% of residents in the city would have no means for moving around.

In addition, motorbikes are still necessary for Vietnamese, especially low-income people. Up to 70-80% of people in Hanoi and other major cities rely on motorbikes for daily commute and because of the nature of their jobs, they are not frequent users of commuter bus services.

Motorbikes are still contributing to social development and meeting the basic transport demands of many residents. Therefore, it is certain that many residents would fail to earn a living without motorbikes, he says.

Pham Sanh, another traffic specialist, says the core problem is dealing with traffic infrastructure planning.

Social and economic conditions in Vietnam would prevent the Government from making strong traffic improvements within the next few years.

In other words, it is impossible to build roads and metro lines overnight. The goal should be more realistic…

Besides, local authorities must solve its dense population and huge flow of migrant workers.

It is urban planning that matters. For instance, the city should move condo projects along with hospitals and schools to the outskirts to reduce pressure on downtown areas while building up a suitable roadmap to gradually reduce personal vehicles to avoid socio-economic shocks, Sanh says.

Vu Cao Minh, secretary of the Party Committee of Thanh Xuan District, says on news site Vietnamnet that a complete ban on motorbikes is a tough goal to reach.

Personable vehicles in the city now include not only motorbikes but also electric bikes. A target of halving the number of personal vehicles by 2025 seems a more feasible goal.

In addition, waterway transportation, for example on the To Lich River, which has a notorious reputation for severe pollution, could be improved to facilitate commuter transport in the city.

Nguyen Phi Thuong, chairman of Hanoi Transport and Services Corporation, the public bus operator, says the city needs to double the number of buses, which currently meet 8-10% of commuter demand.

The city now has 1,000 buses, with 27 million passenger rides a month.

Furthermore, a metro system should be considered a long-term solution to reducing congestion. However, the first urban rail line will not be up and running until 2018 if things go well.

At least five other lines have been planned, with construction work expected to last a decade.

In the foreseeable future, Hanoi will have to live with dense motorcycle traffic.

SGT