The World Bank’s (WB) experts have highlighted the effective operation of Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project in Hanoi, said Chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee Nguyen Duc Chung at the meeting with voters on October 8.
BRT on Lang Ha street. Photo: Cong Hung
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He stressed that in order to increase the rate of passengers using BRT, it is necessary to connect effectively with other bus routes and the Cat Linh - Ha Dong railway, which is set to come into commercial operation early next year.
Hanoi is also seeking solutions to improve the quality of BRT service, creating favorable conditions for its residents to use this kind of transport, Chung said.
BRT is one of the three components in the Hanoi Urban transport investment project, which was approved in 2007 and financed by the WB's official development assistance (ODA). Work on BRT route No.01, which runs from Yen Nghia bus station to Kim Ma street with a length of 14.77 kilometers, started in 2013, but due to delays and difficulties in construction, only until December 31, 2016 did this BRT route come into operation at a cost of US$53.6 million.
According to statistics of the Hanoi Public Transport Management and Operation Center, since its first launching, BRT has achieved high efficiency with the average number of 13,485 passengers per day and reached 17,465 passengers per day in peak hour.
Director of the Hanoi Public Transport Management and Operation Center Nguyen Hoang Hai said that passenger of BRT mainly use this kind of transportation in peak hours, from 7.00 – 9.00 a.m and 4.30 – 6.30 p.m, contributing to 50% capacity of the whole day. It is expected that passengers will experience the best services in BRT. This is a great advantage and contributes to the image of BRT, Hai added.
According to the WB's senior transport specialist Paul Vallely, BRT has been implemented efficiently in many countries in the world, which meets the transport demand of the public for low investment requirement. With the rapid growth of Hanoi's population, as well as the number of individual transport vehicles, the implementation of BRT is necessary.
