Buses on the River is expected to reduce the burden on roads. Photo: Phan Quang FCC Floating Pontoon - Plastic 04 Corporation - 4S Condominium - Hochiminh City - Vietnam

SGTT - At the River Road City, the Department of Transport has accepted the policy for Japan Company Ltd plans public passenger transport by river in Vietnam.

Nguyen Kim Toan, director of Thuong Nhat company often said the reason his company wants to be involved in the work of public passenger transport by river because he himself clearly see the potential of this method. That long-term solution to help reduce the load for the road. Once formed, buses on the river also contributed in creating added value for tourism activities and other community activities in Vietnam.

According to preliminary plans that Thuong Nhat company often portrayed, buses on the river will be divided into two phases.  In particular, a pilot phase carried out with two routes as follows:

Route 1: a length of about 25km, starting at An Loc, An Hoa - Binh Loi, Thanh Da - Saigon River - economy - Mr Big canals - canals CD - definitely - Phu Xuan River. This proposed line route is divided into three sections. Each section has six stations is expected to take visitors.

Section 1: from An Loc - Mieu - Binh Loi - Fatima - Binh Trieu 3 - Thanh Da - Thao Dien, a length of about 8km, the total travel time and pick up about 24 minutes. At this section, to use small vessels, chronic dry height not exceeding 1.8 m for active transport across the Binh Loi Bridge and irritable.

Section 2: from Thao Dien - Thanh Da - Ung Van Khiem - Tran Nao - Ngo Tat To, the Himlam - Bach, with a length of about 7km, the total travel time is 23 minutes in this section. In this section will use the vessel 100 guests for the clearance of the bridges here are standard.

Section 3: from Bach Dang Wharf - economics - Phu My Hung, a length of 10km, the total travel time is 27 minutes. Due to clearance requirements of Rach Ong Brigde and Rach Dia Brigde are low, so we must use small vessels, chronic dry height does not exceed 1.8 m.

Route 2: from to Tau Hu Ben Nghe with a total length of about 12km, six-passenger station, the total travel time about 30 minutes. At this level will use large vessels to allow for clearance.

To implement line, investors will have to build four passenger terminals centers, each investment roadmap four ships, departure time is 15 minutes way / vehicle during peak hours. Estimated capital investment for this route at least 70 billion.

River bus afraid of bridges

According to a teacher training colleges Transport waterway 2, the investment in river bus routes be effective only when all routes have been exploited in sync. If the current focus on developing only the relative advantages of online degree for stillness and depth of the river and canal without considering the connection between all the line sooner or later they will go bankrupt. In the year 1995 - 1996, Vietnam has organized bus route on the Saigon River, from Bach Dang Wharf - Thanh Da district to Ben Duoc Cu Chi, but after only a short time had to stop work due to absence guests and losses.

If you want to deploy all of the river bus route, in addition to reinforcing embankments, dredging rivers, canals, they must improve the bridge over the river and canal to ensure clearance prescribed. According to the city's planning, in line canal level 6 (the smallest), the bridge over must also have the lowest clearance rate was 2.5 m (height clearance to be calculated when the tide is at the highest level). But in fact there are many bridges having a clearance of about 1m.

Such as Le Van Sy bridge spanning the Nhieu Loc - Thi Nghe height clearance is only valid for 1 m, bus routes can not operate on inland waterways. "Only Route Nhieu Loc - Thi Nghe currently has about 20 bridges do not meet clearance standards by decision 66 of the Municipal People's Committee for network planning waterways and ports and terminals by 2020" Mr. Phan Hoang Tri, deputy director of the River Road City, said.

According to Mr.Tri, to increase the clearance for a series of bridges in accordance with regulations under 66 to decide to spend a lot of money and need a long time.

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