On January 15 (December 24), people continued to rush out of Ho Chi Minh City to their hometown to celebrate Tet. Roads and airports are full of passengers.
The trains are happy once more
From early in the morning, on the highway Ho Chi Minh City – Long Thanh – Dau Giay, cars rush to leave the city. Through the highway area, the road in Long Khanh district (Dong Nai) and Ham Tan area (Binh Thuan) has been congested.
Mr. Ngoc Thanh (living in Thu Duc City, Ho Chi Minh City) said that his family and some families invited each other to their hometown in the northern provinces by car. “By the followingnoon of January 15, my whole family arrived in Phu Yen. The road was not too crowded, only local traffic jams occurred in some areas. Many of my friends also chose to drive home due to the expensive airfare.” – Mr. Thanh said.
Meanwhile, at Saigon station, every 1-2 hours, long whistles are heard to inform guests who are regarding to board the train home to celebrate Tet.
Present at the station from 6:00 on January 15, Mr. Le Anh Tuan, Deputy Director in charge of Saigon Railway Transport Branch, expressed his joy when the trains were crowded once more following a long time of silence. due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mr. Tuan said the number of passengers started to increase from December 23 and 24 with regarding 18 trains, transporting 9,000 passengers. During the two days of December 26 and 28, guests peaked with 9,500 – 10,000 turns.
At the bus stations, the number of customers buying bus tickets to their hometown to welcome Tet has gradually increased. As noted by a reporter of Nguoi Lao Dong Newspaper at 2 Mien Dong bus stations, a number of car companies to the North, Central and Central Highlands provinces still have tickets for the day before Tet. There are sleeper tickets, seats or sleeper tickets on the fairway, priced from 450,000 VND to 1.9 million VND depending on the route.
At Mien Tay Bus Station, the number of passengers increased by 40% compared to weekdays. To ensure customer service on peak days on the 27th and 28th of the Lunar New Year, some businesses have registered to supplement with 36 vehicles, transporting 1,200 passengers.
| People board the train to go home to welcome Tet on the morning of January 15. Photo: THU HONG |
Smooth check-in at the airport
With air routes, the domestic and international terminal areas at Tan Son Nhat airport continue to be crowded. Airport data on January 15 shows that a total of 877 flights are expected to be operated, of which 736 are passenger flights, an increase of nearly 10 flights compared to January 14. The number of passengers going to the airport also increased sharply with nearly 125,000 arrivals, of which more than 63,000 domestic passengers.
At the international terminal, nearly 20,000 international passengers arrived, including many overseas Vietnamese returning to their hometown following 3 years of being stuck abroad due to the COVID-19 epidemic.
Although the number of passengers is increasing sharply in the days leading up to Tet, but according to some passengers, the domestic terminal is not too crowded, the queues and procedures are smooth. Currently, the highest density of operation at Tan Son Nhat airport is 44 flights/hour for the time frames from 6:00 am to 11:55 pm.
Regarding Tet air tickets, currently there are not many flights from Ho Chi Minh City to the Central and North, with high prices or no choice of flight time. Particularly for the Ho Chi Minh City – Hanoi route, tickets are still available, but most of them are connecting flights.
Minimize flight delays and cancellations as much as possible
The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam has just sent a telegram to relevant units on strengthening the order and safety of aviation traffic during the Lunar New Year and the 2023 Lunar New Year festival.
Accordingly, the agency requires airlines to develop plans to increase flights and arrange flights to operate at night; develop plans, control measures, minimize flight delays and cancellations.