Pilot ban on passenger buses on lane 1 of Hanoi - Hai Phong highway expected from September 15

Major General Do Thanh Binh, Director of the Traffic Police Department, spoke.

The above information was stated at a meeting on ensuring traffic order and safety and reducing congestion organized by the Traffic Police Department ( Ministry of Public Security ) in coordination with the Vietnam Road Administration and the Vietnam Register (Ministry of Construction) on September 12.

The discussion took place in the context of the pilot project to adjust truck lanes and speed limits on the Hanoi - Hai Phong and Phap Van - Cau Gie expressways, which has been going on for nearly a month, initially yielding positive results and receiving support from the majority of traffic participants.

Proposal to reorganize the position and sharpness of the signs

Major General Do Thanh Binh, Director of the Traffic Police Department, said the goal of the meeting was to reduce accidents; create order, develop infrastructure and promote economic transport, especially in the development phase of expressways and high-speed railways.

Major General Do Thanh Binh emphasized that the situation of accidents involving commercial transport vehicles is still complicated.

After checking more than 1,590 photos from a surveillance camera on the Noi Bai - Lao Cai highway, the police discovered nearly 300 drivers violating the law. Of these, more than 280 drivers were not wearing seat belts. Notably, 203 of the violations were yellow-plate vehicles (transportation vehicles).

In addition, the leader of the Traffic Police Department also suggested that it is necessary to review and reorganize the traffic system, especially in terms of location and sharpness of signs. At the same time, it is necessary to study the organization of traffic on the road surface, road markings, road surface symbols, lane division, etc.

Another important solution proposed is that the three units need to connect and exchange data, especially data at toll stations. This helps manage vehicles and speeds to prevent accidents and traffic violations.

" In the near future, the nationwide traffic surveillance camera system will develop, especially on highways. Therefore, units need to share data with each other," said Major General Do Thanh Binh.

Regarding the Vietnam Register, Mr. Binh said that there should be solutions to improve the input standards for commercial transport vehicles. In particular, the specialized unit needs to clarify the safety between original vehicles and modified vehicles (2-storey sleeper).

For motorbikes, it is necessary to study standards on ABS brakes and standards on ensuring environmental emissions.

"58% of accidents involve motorbikes, if there were better brake structures, accidents would be reduced," said the Director of the Traffic Police Department.

Regarding this issue, Colonel Pham Quang Huy, Deputy Director of the Traffic Police Department, requested the Vietnam Register to soon study and evaluate the safety level of sleeper buses. In particular, it is necessary to evaluate and compare the safety level between sleeper buses and original cars, especially in special conditions such as driving on mountain passes, slopes... and making sharp turns.

"From research and evaluation, conditions for application can be proposed such as: sleeper buses can only run on flat roads or have speed limits or traffic hours," Colonel Pham Quang Huy proposed.

Research on banning practice cars from entering lane 1 of highways

Regarding driver training, the Vietnam Road Administration currently recognizes that there are problems in implementing the regulation "driver training on highways".

In reality, there have been situations where a practice car entering the highway (especially in the beginning, when not used to it) has difficulty reaching or exceeding the minimum speed. This leads to obstruction of other vehicles.

The specialized departments of the Traffic Police Department and the Vietnam Road Administration have researched and have 2 options:

Option 1: Maintain current regulations, increase inspection, supervision, and handling of violations by driving instructors when allowing students to drive at a speed lower than the minimum prescribed speed; at the same time, recommend practicing driving on highways with low traffic volume, avoiding rush hours and days.

Option 2: Research and pilot: Driving practice vehicles on the highway are not allowed to drive in lane number 1 (lane close to the median strip). From there, amend relevant legal regulations.

Expressing his opinion, Colonel Pham Quang Huy said that it is necessary to strictly manage the practice cars entering the highway. If they do enter, the learner must ensure that all conditions are met and that they have learned to a certain level before they can enter.

Passenger cars are expected to be banned from lane 1 of the highway.

Regarding the lane division plan on the highway, the units basically agreed to continue implementing the plan to ban trucks from traveling in lane 1 as piloted, and continue to ban passenger cars (regulated by specific number of seats) from traveling in this lane, expected from September 15.

Regarding the number of seats of passenger vehicles expected to be banned from lane 1, there are currently two options.

Option 1 applies to passenger vehicles with 16 seats or more (including limousines).

Option 2, applies to passenger vans with 29 seats or more.

According to authorities, the number of passenger vans with less than 29 seats accounts for a large proportion of vehicles participating in traffic (estimated by BOT units is 15%).

If this amount of vehicles is banned from entering lane 1, there is a potential risk of congestion and reduced traffic capacity in lanes 2 and 3.

PV (synthesis)

Source: https://baohaiphong.vn/du-kien-thi-diem-cam-xe-khach-chay-o-lan-1-cao-toc-ha-noi-hai-phong-tu-15-9-520665.html