Viet Nam News
DA NANG — The central city of Da Nang planned to ban over 30-seat buses from the downtown area during rush hour to reduce alarming congestion in the first quarter of 2019, director of the city’s transport department Le Van Trung said.
He said the city had limited the operation of over 30-seat buses between April and December and it had gradually helped to ease traffic jams.
Trung said 45-seat coaches, which were mostly operated by travel agencies, often caused congestion between 5pm and 6.30pm.
The city does not have enough parking areas for coaches and buses.
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| Tourists enjoy an open-top bus in Da Nang.— VNS Photo Cong Thanh |
The city will expand the ban for buses and coaches at popular tourist destinations, such as Han Market, the city’s administrative centre, the Cham sculpture museum and Da Nang Museum.
Trung said the city would ask travel agencies to only offer rides to these destinations after rush hour, while boosting the operation of public buses.
According the city’s transport department, six new inner-city bus routes with subsidised fares will be added in the second quarter of 2019, increasing the number to 11.
The routes will have new 40-seat buses connecting major mass commuter destinations including Han Port, the central bus station, Non Nuoc tourism site, March 29th Park, Hi-Tech Park and Viet Nam-Korea College in the districts of Hai Chau, Ngu Hanh Son, Hoa Vang, Son Tra and Lien Chieu.
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| A new public bus route uses 29-seat buses to transport tourists and local residents in Da Nang’s downtown.— VNS Photo Cong Thanh |
Tickets will cost VND5,000 (US$0.2) per trip, or VND90,000 ($4) for a monthly pass. People with disabilities, students and workers in industrial zones will get a 50 per cent discount.
In 2018, the city, in co-operation with Toyota Mobility Foundation, launched 61 new 40-seat buses on five routes operating between 5am until 9pm each day.
The city’s population of 900,000 has far outgrown the current public bus system, which has just 48 buses on five routes, meeting just 10 per cent of demand.
More than 7.6 million tourists, including 2.9 million foreigners, visited the city in 2018. — VNS