According to the Hanoi Bus Station, the number of passengers is likely to increase by 20 percent against last year. About 36,000 passengers are expected to select services at the city’s Southern Bus Station during the Tet holiday, a two-fold increase against normal days.  

An official from the Hanoi Bus Station told VOV that bus stations are likely to be crowded two weeks before and after the Tet holiday which falls on February 17 this year. As usual, these stations are overcrowded five days before and after the holiday, causing social disorder and negative phenomena such as robbery and fake tickets. In addition, the participation of private transport companies to capitalise on the festival complicates the situation, causing a headache to managers.

Officials from the Hanoi Bus Station said that this year the price of bus tickets remains unchanged and warned that passengers should buy tickets at its counters to avoid scalping.

To better serve passengers and ease pressure during the Tet holiday, local public transport companies and administrations have drawn up plans for major routes such as Hanoi-Nam Dinh, Hanoi-Vinh, Ho Chi Minh City-Ca Mau and Ho Chi Minh City-Da Nang since mid December 2006. They also reserved additional buses for trans-national routes from northern provinces to Buon Ma Thuot City and Ho Chi Minh City and high-quality express bus routes such as Hanoi-Hai Phong and Hanoi-Quang Ninh as the number of passengers is expected to increase by 50-60 percent after the Tet holiday. Some stations will even mobilise buses to operate around the clock during peak days to receive last passengers. 

To protect passengers’ interests, bus stations will publicise information about routes and their timetable. Nguyen Tat Thanh, director of Hanoi’s Southern Bus Station, said all drivers and staff will be mobilised to work full steam to ensure safety for busses from Hanoi to northern destinations such as Nam Dinh, Vinh and Dien Bien.   

Nguyen Hoang Trung, head of the Administration Department of the Hanoi Bus Station’s Management Company said that security forces will be deployed at all stations around the clock to maintain order and security and strictly deal with scalping. He added that the company will also coordinate with the traffic police to inspect overloaded buses and prevent buses from picking up passengers illegally.

It is hoped that passengers will feel comfortable when taking public means of transport during the Tet holiday.