VietNamNet Bridge – Hundreds of thousands of migrant workers in HCM City are concerned about the availability of bus tickets and rising prices for the Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday.

Thousands of migrant workers in HCM City returning to their hometowns during the Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday are worried about bus ticket shortages and rising prices. — VNA/VNS Photo

A survey conducted at the Eastern Bus Terminal shows that most seats were fully booked for buses with beds from HCM City to provinces in the Mekong Delta, and northern and central regions.

Kieu Thanh Nam, general director of Eastern Bus Terminal, said the Eastern Bus Terminal would provide 14,300 buses to serve more than 400,000 travelers.

If that is not enough, major transporters such as Phuong Trang, Chin Nghia and Thuan Thao will rent more buses from the Western Region bus station to satisfy demand, he said.

Besides ticket shortages, migrant workers also face increases in bus ticket prices as well as airfares.

During Tet, the fares for trips from the Eastern Bus Terminal to the central and Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta provinces will increase between 20 to 60 per cent over regular fares.

Since buses with beds will still be in short supply, some workers will have to buy tickets from private transporters at double the price they would normally pay.

Nguyen Van Tien, a worker from the northern province of Nam Dinh, said that he was struggling to buy tickets to take a trip to his hometown.

“All buses with beds are fully booked, so we had to pay a fare of more than VND1 million (US$44) for a seat from a private bus company. How can my child sit still for more than a day?” he said.

Airfare is also higher than normal, which has caused many people to book very late or early flights to save money on domestic routes.

Nguyen Van Thanh, an office worker in HCM City, said he paid more than VND22 million (US$980) for three return flights on Vietnam Airlines from HCM City to Da Nang for a family reunion during the traditional Tet festival.

“This year’s airfare was much higher than in previous years,” he said.

Vietjet Air has announced that tickets for its HCM City-Vinh route, a city in the central province of Nghe An, between January 29 and February 1 (three days before Tet), have sold out. Tickets on February 3 will cost over VND2.8 million.

Similarly, Jetstar Pacific said there were no more tickets on its four daily flights from HCM City to Vinh between January 31 and February 2.

These three airlines have sold out HCM City-Hue City flights between January 29 and February 2. However, tickets are still available on these dates for flights from HCM City to Da Nang and Nha Trang.

Dinh Viet Thang, director of the Civil Aviation Administration of Viet Nam (CAAV), said the numbers of air passengers during the Tet holiday is expected to rise by 11 per cent compared with the previous year

CAAV will use 32 airplanes during the holiday period, bringing the number of aircraft for domestic flights from 158 to over 180, Thang said.

Jestar Pacific also will add 80,000 seats for domestic flights over the period, and will have more flights.

HCM City’s Student Support Centre will gift bus tickets to 3,000 poor students to return home for Tet from HCM City to the central provinces.

Passengers buy coach tickets at Mien Tay Coach Station in HCM City. — VNA/VNS Photo Hoang Hai

Traffic congestion

HCM City authorities have deployed various measures to ensure traffic safety and order before and during the holiday.

Vo Khanh Hung, deputy director of the city’s Department of Transportation, said to ensure smooth traffic and punish violators, the department has asked Binh Duong and Dong Nai provinces and Mekong Delta provinces to use more traffic police around the clock and put up more road signs.

Traffic hotspots in HCM City include the intersection of Ring Road No 2 in District 9; Long Thanh Bridge which links HCM City with Dong Nai Province; Long Phuoc and Dau Giay toll stations and toll station No 51; and the intersection at National Highway No 51 and HCM City-Long Thanh-Dau Giay Expressway.

Nguyen Thi Hoai Phuong, deputy director of the Viet Nam Expressway Services Engineering (VECE), said that if traffic congestion extends over 500m at Long Phuoc and Dau Giay toll stations, VECE will divert traffic flows to An Phu, Ring Road 2, National Highway No 51 and Dau Giay intersections, avoiding the expressway.

In addition, the Long Phuoc and Dau Giay toll stations will open the gates for free for vehicles to pass through if traffic congestion extends over 500m, Phuong said.

Tens of thousands of vehicles from HCM City will travel to provinces in the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta. Traffic jams are expected at sections and intersections on National Highway 1A, National Highway No 50, HCM City-Trung Luong Expressway, as well as Rach Mieu and My Thuan bridges and many small bridges. 

VNS