First river bus to be launched soon in HCM City
The first river bus route of Ho Chi Minh city will be put into operation on August 21 with one-way tickets priced at VND15,000 (US$68 cents), said a representative from the HCM City Department of Transport.
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Pham Cong Bang, head of the department’s Inland Waterways Board, said that the route starts at Bach Dang wharf in District 1, follows the Sai Gon river through Thanh Da canal then ends at the station on Binh Quoi river in Linh Dong Ward, Thu Duc District and vice versa.
Earlier, the Bach Dang-Linh Dong river bus route was piloted between June 30 and July 30.
Twelve stops, which all have parking lots, have been set up along the route in Districts 1, 2, Binh Thanh and Thu Duc.
The route is 11 kilometres and the travel time is 30 minutes for each trip, a third faster than using a bus.
Passengers will be required to wear life-jackets and they are also provided with a round float. The route has five ships which can serve 80 passengers each.
HCM City has also planned to open the second river bus route in 2018 which will have a total length of 10.3 km, running from Bach Dang wharf to Tau Hu canal.
The city has already approved river bus routes 3 and 4.
