I want to tell you a little about road traffic in Vietnam
First, the French were in Vietnam. The movement was declared to be right-handed. On this, the entire educational driving culture was completed.
The people were poor, the bicycle was a luxury.
Then the Americans came. More details from here.
Struck by the bacchanalia that reigned on the roads, the American administration allocated a dozen motorcycles with sidecars that cruised around the city.
A fighter was sitting in a carriage, in his hands, who had a bamboo stick wrapped in rags (not animals).
As soon as the fighter noticed a cyclist riding in the oncoming lane, he delivered a quick blow to the latter in the face with a bamboo stick, while simultaneously knocking the offender off the bike.
This method of restoring order had an effect and the Vietnamese began to travel in rows. However, as we know, America lost the war.
Perhaps one of the reasons for this defeat was their persistence in restoring order.
After the war, everything returned to normal: everyone traveled, who was in what much. It got to the point that the then leadership of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam turned to the then leadership of the USSR for help. And then, one fine day, our Soviet traffic cops appeared on the streets of Ho Chi Minh.
We studied the features of local brains and orders. Decided to make the traffic on part of the streets of Ho Chi Minh one-way.
Done.
The Vietnamese drove down the street in accordance with the sign ... And on the sidewalks in the opposite direction.
Our traffic cops clutched their heads and suggested adopting a law on administrative penalties and fines for traffic violations.
To which a fair answer followed: "The government that adopts these laws will not last long."
That's the way it was
But, the arrival of our traffic cops was not in vain.
Some experience has been passed on.
For example, from an ambush with a radar on straight, flat sections of the road outside the city, where for some reason there is a restrictive sign of 40 km / h.
Well, the solution of issues "without a receipt" and savings bank "...
It has been noticed: where a traffic jam of humming motorbikes, rickshaws and cars gathers, there is a traffic cop / traffic controller.
Without them, somehow everything resolves itself. At the level of instinct.
Worst of all for drivers of passenger cars.
Private.
He is always to blame.
And it doesn’t matter that that motorbiker, just in front of his nose, decided to turn around from the right lane.
He (motorbiker) is poor, he has no money for treatment and repair of his motorbike.
And you are rich, you have a personal car. You and pay.
This is the system of socialism in action.
By the way, after each accident, a crowd gathers around, which decides who is right and who should pay.
So that the Vietnamese traffic cops go to the analysis only if the case ends in a fatal outcome.
So more and more it is decided according to everyday ... But without scuffle.
What else to say about traffic in Ho Chi Minh and the surrounding area?
The main thing in the car is the horn. If the horn breaks, the driver lights up the alarm, takes it to the right and will not go until it is fixed.
And also, briefly about traffic: this is a madhouse.
I, having a driving experience with a license from 86 years old (and driving experience from 11 years old) would not have ventured in Ho Chi Minh even to leave the garage gate
06.07.2019 17:47
Do not believe those who say that the roads in Asia are chaos. If you cannot understand something, then it is extremely incorrect to call it chaos. For the first time, we plunged into the abyss of Asian road traffic in Sri Lanka. Therefore, the perception of Vietnamese traffic was already on prepared ground and did not cause shock. Below I will share a 3-month experience of driving a bike in Vietnam, I will tell you in detail about all road users and their features.
Only at first glance, chaotic, scary and unpredictable. An unprepared person who arrives in Vietnam is horrified by this inexhaustible stream of mopeds. In fact, it is quite comfortable and safe here, no matter how wild it may sound. To understand the essence of what is happening, let's compare the road flow with a mountain river, which smoothly and harmoniously flows around all obstacles and merges with other rivers flowing into it. If you throw a stone into such a stream of water, then nothing terrible will happen! The river will not stop, it will smoothly flow around the obstacle!
So is traffic in Vietnam. The main rule is no sudden movements, regardless of whether you are crossing the road on foot or driving a bike. I want to try to systematize the subtleties and nuances of traffic in Vietnam for pedestrians and bikes.
First, a few words about modes of transport on the roads and psychological characteristics of drivers of each type.
Pedestrians
1. How to cross the road in Vietnam. Do not even hope that if you cross the road on a zebra, they will let you through. Remember the comparison with a mountain river? It will not stop even for a moment if you enter it. Be careful, walk forward slowly and always look at the flow of traffic approaching you. This is where eye contact is important. Do not even try to speed up and run - this is a direct road to the hospital. Walk slowly and confidently, all mopeds will bypass you, it is better to skip other vehicles. You will be informed about your intention NOT to let you through by flashing headlights.
2. Sidewalks. Forget about it! The Vietnamese don't walk, they ride bikes, which means they don't need sidewalks. Sidewalks are used as a parking lot, a trash can, a dining room, a shop, a hairdresser ... In fairness, it should be noted that there are still sidewalks in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.
This is not a watermelon sale, this is a typical sidewalk:
And this is not a parking lot for a bus, but also a sidewalk:
And this is the sale of Christmas decorations. On the pavement, of course.
Transport.
Now the most interesting thing is Vietnam SDA (Concepts of Road Traffic) That's right, because traffic in Vietnam is more subject to concepts, not rules.
Traffic jams, parking, accidents
Mopeds must only be parked on the sidewalk! If you leave it on the roadway, it is fraught with a tow truck, especially on the main streets. We saw repeatedly how a truck collects packs of mopeds under the supervision of the police. Modern shopping centers have good (though sometimes paid) parking lots. Most often they protect from rain, although in Vietnam no one bothers about this.
There are no traffic jams in Nha Trang. Even on the main streets during rush hour, traffic can be very dense, but there will be traffic, which cannot be said about Ho Chi Minh
With all the saturation of traffic, surprisingly in 3 months I saw only two accidents! One of them, on the driver's own initiative, was driving down a one-way street and crashed into a garbage truck (a container on bicycle wheels that is manually moved from house to house, because there are no centralized trash cans in Vietnam). The second accident is the only real accident that I saw, everyone is alive, a little scratched. In Russia, accidents are much more common.
On this cheerful note, perhaps that's all I wanted to talk about traffic in Vietnam. We arrived and all our movements were exclusively on it. In general, a bike in Vietnam gives incredible freedom - we rode it everywhere and always, in any weather, and even 200 km away in Mui Ne to visit a friend from Barnaul, who has been living in Southeast Asia for many years. If you follow the rules that I wrote about above, then you will fully experience the convenience and safety of this type of transport!
Super UserRoad traffic in Vietnam
In Vietnam, traffic is characterized by its own unusual laws that not even all Vietnamese know and understand. One of the features of Vietnam is a huge number of mopeds, bicycles and motorcycles.
The Vietnamese prefer to travel by these vehicles because of the high cost of cars, which are subject to a huge duty of 200%. Moreover, after an hour of being in Vietnam, you understand that this is a city in which, even if you have a car, not everyone will dare to travel in it.
The most important vehicle in Vietnam is the moped, without which no local resident can imagine his life. Thus, the roadways of cities are filled with thousands of mopeds and only a small number of expensive cars that, like turtles, move slowly and carefully.
Tourists in Vietnam are amazed by very interesting and funny moments of everyday life, for example, by how the Vietnamese have adapted to transport not only various animals (chickens, ducklings, pigs) on their small vehicles, but also building materials, huge furniture, household appliances and much more.
Most tourists who have just arrived in the country are shocked and frightened by the fact that the locals completely disregard the rules of the road. Formally, they exist in Vietnam, but, unfortunately, no one observes them on the roads. In crowded cities, endless streams of mopeds rush, not noticing traffic lights, road signs, or zebra crossings for pedestrians. Sometimes, of course, very frisky drivers are still punished with a fine for speeding or breaking the rules. But these are very insignificant fines, which do not particularly teach drivers anything. Therefore, do not be surprised if you see a Vietnamese on a moped, who not only enters the oncoming lane and crosses the road through two solid lines, but also turns left from the rightmost lane. All this is quite natural - he's in a hurry!
It is also important that the Vietnamese practically do not use rear-view mirrors at all, even in the case of rebuilding to another line. Therefore, if you notice only one mirror on a moped, do not be surprised, because some mopeds cannot boast of this either.
In Vietnam, as in all other Southeast Asia, one cannot be mobile without one's own means of transportation. Public transport in Vietnam is poorly developed, and by and large is only in large cities and tourist centers. In the same Nha Trang, there are only a few routes to the most popular points, but in Fukuoka there are none at all.
To be tied to the schedule of buses, which, moreover, do not run often or do not run at all, you see, is inconvenient. Therefore, a motorbike (scooter, moped, motorcycle) in the hot expanses of Phu Quoc Island is the first thing. Therefore, we will analyze how bike rental in Phu Quoc works, how much it costs to rent a bike on the island, what documents are needed to rent a bike, and what traffic rules apply in Vietnam.
How to rent a bike in Fukuoka?
In Fukuoka, it is cheaper to rent a house outside the city, closer to nature, almost in the middle of nowhere, and without a bike it is impossible to go to the beach, the market or to the sights. If the trip is short, a week or two, then you can simply rent a moped from any rental company, but if you have to live for a month or more, then from the point of view of economic feasibility, it is cheaper to buy your own. We did just that. I wrote about how to buy a moped in Fukuoka in a detailed article.
We came to Phu Quoc during the high season and scooter rentals started at 150,000 VND (6.5 USD). Our plans were to stay on the island for at least two months, so the rental budget in the future was from 9,000,000 dong ($ 400), and for that kind of money you can already take a used scooter. But renting is suitable for short-term use. Here are some useful tips for those who will rent a motorbike in Vietnam:
Where to rent a bike in Fukuoka?
You can rent a bike anywhere, but I recommend that you first read the order of rental prices in a particular city. On a trip around the province of Phu Yen, we rented a scooter for 150,000 dong (6.5 dollars), and on our arrival to the island of Phu Quoc, the Episode festival (reincarnation) thundered there and judging by the local chat in the telegram, bikes were rented from 250,000 ($ 11), and those weren't. Do not rush to shoot the first one that comes across, walk around the area, maybe save a couple of dollars. For example, we, far from the tourist area, in our own guesthouse immediately rented for 150,000 dong and drove it until we bought our own.
How to find the lowest price when renting a bike?
If there are no cheap options in the area, but you need to drive, rent for a day or two, find a cheaper one and return the first car to the owner. A bike and a hotel are the most important expenses on a trip, in addition to food, it makes no sense to overpay for something that can be found cheaper. Average prices for automatic bikes in Fukuoka: VND 100,000 - VND 150,000. More expensive only in high season in tourist areas.
How to check the technical condition of the bike when renting?
Be sure to check the technical condition of the bike: brakes, shock absorbers, headlights, steering wheel. It is best to make a couple of circles around the district, see how the gears change, the pads work, the engine hums. If the scooter twitches sharply while driving, then it is better not to take such a device, it has a gear shifting system and driving this is not only inconvenient, but simply dangerous.
- Point out any chips or cracks to the owner so they don't include the repair bill on you when you return it. Better yet, take a picture of the bike from all sides, and separately the number - believe me, it will be easier to find yours in the crowd of bikes in the parking lot.
- Minor accidents are commonplace, the one who does nothing is not mistaken. Therefore, if you have a trouble and the bike is damaged, it is better to evaluate the repair in the service (of which there are a great many) and it is possible to make repairs than to give the amount two to three times more when you return.
- Maintenance is the owner's concern, it is better to come to show the moped for a scheduled maintenance a couple of times a week. If the bike is new, then this is superfluous, but still: checking the oil, pumping up tires can be useful.
- Usually they require a deposit in the form of a passport, but you should also agree on a copy / photo, justifying that the passport is in pledge with the hotel owner, you can give the hotel address and phone number. Why? Because in the event of an accident or theft, your passport will not be returned to you until you pay the damage, which can be as much as the cost of a new bike, which is 1000 - 1500 dollars.
- Read on about the legal side of the issue, but without a license, and even more so driving skills, getting behind the wheel is a personal choice for everyone. If there are no options, then ask someone experienced to show you how to drive a scooter, this is easy to do in a Facebook group or local chat, for example, Russian chat in a telegram on Fukuoka and a group on Facebook ).
- Theft of bikes in Vietnam is rare, but for example, on the island of Phu Quoc, it’s pointless, it’s impossible to take them out of the island on a ferry without documents, and it’s dreary on a smuggled boat, but still don’t forget about simple precautions: don’t leave the key in the ignition, don’t leave it for a long time in an unfamiliar place, do not leave it in the middle of the road (they can drag it to another place and you will not find it).
What rights do you need in Vietnam to drive a bike?
Driving a vehicle without an appropriate driver's license is an offense. Since January 2018, amendments to the criminal code have come into force in Vietnam, and driving without a license on the roads of a socialist republic can result in an impressive fine and even imprisonment.
International driving license in Vietnam
In 2015, Vietnam ratified the international convention on the recognition of driving licenses of countries participating in this convention, but there are several "buts". In Russia there is a form of an international driver's license in the form of a hefty paper book, which is not valid without a Russian license. That is, even if you have international rights, you need to carry Russian rights with you. And they will only work with the category that is specified in your rights.
That is, if you have category B (passenger car), then you cannot drive a motorcycle. If both A (motorcycle) and B (car), then you can rent both a car and a bike or a motorcycle. Vietnamese inspectors sometimes do not know this, or pretend not to know.
How to localize a driver's license in Vietnam
In Vietnam, you can also go through the procedure of localizing Russian rights if you do not have international ones. This can be done at the Department of Transportation of Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) or Hanoi. This procedure is not difficult, but dreary. It is necessary to translate the rights into Vietnamese and certify them, pay a fee, and hand over documents. The cost of this procedure is about VND 700,000 and takes several days. That is, if you have a driver's license of category A and B, but do not have international rights, you can localize them for the duration of your stay. They write that the conditions are constantly changing and the rights are issued either for the duration of the visa (from 3 months), or forever.
Also, if you have time, but do not have the right category, you can take an exam at a driving school and get the right category. At the same time, if you have a category B, and you have localized the rights, then you do not need to pass the theory, and you will only have to pass the practice.
In any case, with or without a license, Vietnam has a monstrous level of corruption, which is sometimes useful for tourists, and riding a bike without a license is a personal choice for everyone. The watchmen write that the average "fine on the spot" is from 200,000 dong to infinity. Sometimes the Vietnamese set up posts with a tow truck and wrap up bikes for inspection in a continuous stream.
It is easy to see such a post in advance in a traffic jam ahead of the road. I also recommend subscribing to the local chat of the place where you are, in ours, for example, they constantly write where the posts are, and we go around such places.
In the republic, unlike some other Southeast Asian countries (Indonesia, Malaysia), right-hand traffic is like in Russia, and if you drive at home, then there will be no problems with adapting to the transport system. But there will be another problem - in Vietnam, real hell is going on on the roads. The chaotic traffic is especially frightening on the streets of Saigon, and not so scary in the tropical nooks and crannies of Phu Quoc.
The Vietnamese driving style is driving on sidewalks, turning under a red traffic light, cutting and other recklessness, but since the speeds are most often not high, you can survive it, and after a couple of weeks you will get used to it. In any case, here are the main traffic rules, observing which, you are less likely to catch the eye of the inspector or provoke an accident.
On the streets of Saigon... Traffic rules in Vietnam
- Ride only in a helmet, inspectors first of all catch uncovered heads. This is not only expensive for the wallet, but also risky for life.
- Speed limit: in the city up to 40 km/h, outside the city up to 80 km/h. But the boundaries of settlements may not be marked, so even with rights you can run into a fine. Vietnamese cops love to ambush photos of speeding, and driving with the wind is fraught with a hefty fine.
- Movement only on the extreme right lane. According to the rules, the driver of motor vehicles can only move in the far right lane, leaving the left lane only to overtake or avoid obstacles.
- On the roads of Vietnam, you must give way to everyone who is taller than you. The rules of precedence are as follows - a car - a bus - a heavy truck.
- Stop at the stop line of the traffic light: even if the Vietnamese goes to the red, you are not recommended to do this.
The myth of accidents in Asia
And about safety: the fact that Asian drivers drive carefully and have no accidents is a myth. I myself have witnessed several accidents, and even with a fatal outcome. Recently, in front of my eyes, a Kamaz (there are many of them in Vietnam) knocked down a bike with passengers, two adults and a child, like a skittles. It was such a terrible accident with a fatal outcome, after which the desire to drive disappeared like smoke. Now I drive 30 km / h and am not in a hurry to the next world, which is what I wish you. No wand, no nail, as they say.
Those who have visited the countries of Southeast Asia will not be surprised by the specifics of their traffic - since the vast majority of transport in these countries is millions of motorbikes, the organization of traffic is also based on their technical capabilities and the specific local mentality.
In principle, having visited Sri Lanka and Thailand, with their left-hand traffic, I thought that I was ready to perceive the traffic situation in Vietnam, besides, the traffic there is right-hand, like ours - but how wrong I was;))
The first thing that a pedestrian who gets to Vietnam understands is that in this country the rules for crossing the road that are familiar to us all do not work at all;))
No, of course, the well-known road markings - "zebra" - are present there, there are signs of pedestrian crossings ...
But the Vietnamese do not have the habit of stopping in front of them as a class;))
No, car drivers, of course, when they see a pedestrian who has stepped onto a pedestrian crossing, they will most likely stop and let him through - but this rule does not apply at all to numerous motorbikers who stop before the crossing only in extremely extreme cases, when they have nowhere to go at all;) )
In other cases, motorbikes will smoothly flow around the crossing ones, without even braking - and therefore the pedestrian must step on the crossing decisively, firmly and not quickly, leaving time and distance for the numerous motorized brothers to maneuver. ;)
However, usually the flow of traffic on the streets is not as dense as in the photo below, and it is quite realistic, slowly moving across the road, to cross it, while you will be flown around from all sides by a stream of beeping bikers, and you yourself will flow around from heat and stress; ))
Of the advantages of such an organization of the Vietnamese movement - the practical absence of traffic jams that usually occur before crossings with us, and the low average speed of motorbikers - the bulk of the Vietnamese moves at speeds of 30-40 kilometers per hour, which, however, does not exclude the presence of reckless drivers (among which there is a significant the percentage is our compatriots, as it seemed to me);))
Excluding peak hours in the morning, evening and at lunchtime, the flow is not so dense at all that it usually does not cause difficulties with the transition.
In addition to a variety of motorbikes, cycle rickshaws also move along the roads - many of them have acquired an electric hub motor on their bikes and jump off, enjoying the electric traction.
In the evening, this electric unit lights up a bunch of LED strips, which are decorated around the entire perimeter ...
And the rickshaw turns into a kind of mobile Christmas tree;))
However, there are also old-school units that use exclusively muscular traction:
At the same time, their owners behave rather impudently, easily occupying the left car lane and even imposingly changing lanes as soon as the rickshaw wants to.
Among the supporters of the muscular old school there are also cargo bikes:
Another feature of the Vietnamese road traffic is the completely indifferent attitude of bikers to the choice of lane.
If your own, passing lanes turn out to be loaded - no one bothers about this, everyone just changes lanes to oncoming traffic and pushes themselves further where necessary:
The sidewalk is also suitable for traffic - it doesn’t matter if it is on the opposite or on the opposite side;))
Here, pay attention - almost the same section of the road - and on the opposite side they either go in one direction, then in the opposite direction, or this and that, that, and even diagonally;))
Quite specific traffic at intersections;))
It is completely incomprehensible what are the priorities at roundabouts - looking at the markings? it is logical to assume that the ring is the main thing, but the biker does not care at all about this. ;))
As I understand it, the first to go is the one who is bolder, beeps more or louder;))
There are, as it were, regulated intersections - but bikers cross them, like a crowd of drunken cockroaches, to whom it seems more convenient along what trajectory;))
In general - not boring;))
Even in Saigon, where traffic looks more organized and disciplined compared to the resort of Nha Trang, at any intersection, at any traffic light, there are always the "smartest" ones, who most of all need to pass exactly on the red or on the oncoming lane;))
On the small streets, pedestrians also roam as they please;))
Another interesting feature of the traffic in Vietnam is that even if the traffic is heavy, there will always be one or two motorbikers who need to "just around here" ride along the opposite side of the road towards the flow;))
And this is not an isolated occurrence ;)
In addition, it is damn contagious - these two Germans would probably never allow themselves this in their Germany. And in Vietnam, they easily rebuild in the Vietnamese way and have fun sawing in the opposite direction;))
Well, the Buddha himself ordered the Vietnamese to go like this;))
The presence of such "I'm not far away" makes you turn your head 360 degrees when crossing the street - this is not "look left, then right";))
The next nuance of the Vietnamese movement is the transportation of goods on motorbikes.
Quite a lot of people travel not alone, but carrying either a passenger or some kind of luggage, and often quite curious;))
A couple of chairs?
Fantomas mom with fantomas daughter?
Easy!
Stack of boxes?
Nivapros!
Didn't fit in the back?
Let's load ahead!
Thermal booth?
No problem!
Oversized?
Well, so what? ;))
You say only 1 box will fit?
What if you need four?
No problem!
If you need to carry even more - that is, cargo motorbikes:
View restriction?
No, you haven't!
The New Year is just around the corner, how can we celebrate without a festive tree? ;)
By the way, please note that despite the disregard for other traffic rules, the Vietnamese strictly comply with the requirement to ride in a helmet.
However, evil tongues say that the Vietnamese authorities achieved this in a fairly simple and very effective way - they handed out bamboo sticks to the traffic police. with which they foolishly "fined" those who rode without a helmet - and the nation instantly took the lesson ;)))
As I already said, in the 13 millionth Saigon, the attitude to traffic rules is more disciplined than in the resort of Nha Trang - which, however, does not prevent Saigons and Saigons from driving on sidewalks even with an empty roadway;)
In general, having seen enough of all these "beauties" on the first day upon arrival in Vietnam, I decided not to rent a motorbike there, besides, Vietnam joined the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic quite recently (in 2014), and on its territory, Russian Driver's licenses are only of a new type, and category A is not open for me;)).
