According to Nguyen Trong Thong, President of the Hanoi PublicTransportation Association, a surge in personal vehicles in the past 10years and ageing infrastructure have worsened traffic congestion,especially in major cities like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.
In the 2002-2012 period, Hanoi saw annual average rises of 17.2percent in the number of cars and 11 percent in the number ofmotorbikes. Meanwhile, the figures in Ho Chi Minh City were 14.8 percentand 9.8 percent respectively.
Thong proposedinvestments be made in the development of mass transit systems,including bus rapid transit (BRT), metro lines and elevated urbanrailways.
He also suggested the State has thefinancial clout to participate in the building of these systems in orderto lessen the burden on the State budget in the long-term.
It is hoped that once operational, new public transportation willattract more passengers and reduce the use of personal vehicles.
The Ministry of Transport has implemented measures to develop publictransit, including investing in upgrading the bus system andestablishing centres to manage and operate public means of transport.-VNA