Hanoi mulls motorbike ban at certain hours

Traffic jams in Hanoi

This is among the municipal Department of Transport’s contents for a plan to ban motorbikes by 2030.

Under the plan, the city has considered the pilot ban of motorbikes at certain hours from Monday to Friday on the six inner-city streets of Nguyen Trai, Xuan Thuy-Cau Giay, Giai Phong, Nguyen Van Cu, Le Van Luong and Tran Duy Hung. 

Accordingly, at peak hours, motorbikes will be prohibited on part of Nguyen Trai Street which runs from Belt Road 3 to Lang Street in the 2019-2020 period.

The motorbike ban will be applied on Xuan Thuy-Cau Giay Street after Nhon-Cat Linh metro becomes operational after 2020.

The same ban has been mulled over for Giai Phong, Nguyen Van Cu, Le Van Luong and Tran Duy Hung streets.

Hanoi has seven million motorbikes and 650,000 cars. To restrict motorbikes in the city centre, the city has considered the halt of new motorbike registration in the districts of Hoan Kiem, Hai Ba Trung, Ba Dinh, Dong Da and Tay Ho by 2020 first and then this would be conducted in the districts of Cau Giay, Hoang Mai, Long Bien, Thanh Xuan, Gia Lam and Dong Anh by 2025.

Vu Van Vien, director of the Hanoi Department of Transport, said people have their own right to select the means of transport, but this needs to be suitable for the public interest.