People "shyly" pay fines, HCMC traffic jams locally, ambulances "cry" waiting for red lights

After Decree 168 has been in effect for nearly 2 weeks, traffic participants have become more disciplined. However, the decree is still controversial because of the fear of huge fines, so people do not give way to ambulances when waiting at red lights.

Over the past week, after Decree 168 came into effect, the "bad habit" of running red lights and climbing curbs of many people has changed significantly. Many readers expressed their support for the sharp increase in fines for such traffic violations. However, given the serious traffic jams at most intersections because people no longer dare to turn right like before, many opinions suggested that the authorities need to thoroughly understand the issue of allowing right turns at red lights.

For fear of being fined, Ho Chi Minh City and other major cities are facing serious traffic jams after applying new fines for traffic violations. Traffic jams occur on many routes day and night. Many intersections in Ho Chi Minh City are always in a state of prolonged congestion such as: Hai Ba Trung - Dien Bien Phu, Vo Van Tan - Ba Huyen Thanh Quan (District 3); Vo Thi Sau - Nguyen Van Troi, Nguyen Thi Minh Khai - Truong Dinh (Districts 1 and 3); Nam Ky Khoi Nghia - Nguyen Dinh Chieu, Phu Dong Six-Way Intersection Area (District 1);...

Mr. Nguyen Xuan Vinh, Director of the Road Traffic Infrastructure Management Center, said that the new regulation with high fines makes people comply better, but also causes congestion at some intersections. The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport has grasped the situation and is reviewing and installing signs allowing vehicles to turn right when the light is red on some suitable routes.

According to Dan Tri newspaper on January 10, after traffic jams and serious congestion occurred because traffic participants were afraid of "getting caught" at red lights when turning right. The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport immediately reviewed and installed additional traffic lights to allow motorbikes to turn right when the light is red on many central roads. Many roads with serious congestion such as Vo Thi Sau, Dien Bien Phu, Dinh Tien Hoang, Nam Ky Khoi Nghia are being installed with traffic lights to allow motorbikes to turn right by the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport.

Another concern for traffic participants is that when stopping at a red light and encountering an ambulance, many people hesitate whether to run the red light to give way or not. According to Tuoi Tre Online, on October 20, reader TMKh. - an ambulance driver of the Ho Chi Minh City 115 Emergency Center - said that on the night of October 19, he drove an ambulance with priority lights on from Ly Thuong Kiet Street (District 10) to the place where the patient needed to be transported. When the vehicle reached the intersection of Lu Gia - Nguyen Thi Nho Street (Ward 9, Tan Binh District), it was blocked by a man on a motorbike carrying an adult and a child. The man stopped,

got out of the car and yelled at the ambulance driver, pointing at the driver's face and challenging him: "If you're so good, then crash into him."

Many readers were outraged by the man using his motorbike to block an ambulance on duty. According to Tuoi Tre, some people said that this act of blocking the road could cause serious consequences to the health, even the lives, of others who need timely emergency care. Another person expressed: "Why don't you put yourself in the position of a relative of a patient in need of emergency care? If you block an ambulance and the patient unfortunately gets worse, the consequences will be dangerous."

According to Decree 168, effective from January 1, 2025, the fine for many traffic safety violations has increased many times compared to before. In particular, violators of the error of not obeying traffic light signals can be fined 4-6 million VND for motorbikes and 18-20 million VND for cars. Before this fine, some people said: "It is better to be fined 6 million VND for not giving way than losing 20 million VND"; or "not giving way to an ambulance, because who knows, you might be fined, caught, 20 million VND is equal to 2 months of expenses for a family", or "if you let the ambulance pass, your baby will not have milk this month"...

According to Tuoi Tre, is it difficult to give way to priority vehicles? In reality, it is not simple in Vietnam. The road is crowded, the traffic is jammed, I want to give way but I am not careful and end up encroaching on the lane, running lights, and violating the law without realizing it. Many times, I just give way to priority vehicles and get fined for driving against the rules, and if I don't give way, I am afraid of being accused of lack of awareness. Heavy penalties are necessary, but with incomplete infrastructure and chaotic traffic like this, giving way properly is not easy!

Currently, what people want is to contribute ideas about shortcomings such as: narrow roads, lack of parking spaces, cars filling the road, many locations with incomplete road signs and markings, poor traffic signals, unreasonable light timing... So the most important thing is still to improve traffic infrastructure.

Decree on 'crossing the red light' takes effect: a female student 'flew' 5 million for difficult reasons Minh Lan16:18:15 02/01/2025After Decree 168/2024 takes effect, a series of cases of crossing red lights still occur. This comes from the habit of passing yellow lights, launching cars 2-3 seconds before the red light, causing many people to fly half a month's salary in a split second.