From 5 a.m. on, the Mien Tay Coach station was crowded with passengers overloading ticket counters. Traffic was very slow in surrounding areas but congestion did not occur.
Mr. Nguyen Tam Tien, head of the Management Division of the Mien Tay Coach Station, said that the number of passengers through the station reached 55,000 on Friday. It is predicted to increase 2 percent year on year to hit 62,000-65,000 on April 27 and 28, peak travel time for the holiday.
The station has prepared 50 buses in provision for surging passengers but still concerned that traffic jam will occur in routes connecting HCMC and the Mekong Delta and affect the station’s coach operation schedule.
In the meantime, the Mien Dong Coach Station started was crowded from 4 p.m. Roads leading to the station such as Dinh Bo Linh, Xo Viet Nghe Tinh street and Highway 13 saw partially congestion.
The noisy operation of the illegal coach station in front of the Mien Dong station worsened the situation, forcing many passengers to leave taxi cabs or motorbike taxis to walk to the Mien Dong station which was packed with passengers to Central and Central Highlands provinces.
Ticket counters were full with passengers in short-distance routes from HCMC to Nha Trang, Phan Thiet and Da Lat city. Some had to wait for over an hour to get tickets.
The representative of the Mien Dong Coach Station said that the number of passengers through the station approximated 30,000 on Friday. Peak travel time will be on April 27 ad 28 with 50,000 passengers a day.
Deputy director of the station Nguyen Hoang Huy said that the station has prepared additional tickets to meet travel demand in the holiday.
On the same day, Cat Lai ferry linking up HCMC and Dong Nai province was not crowded. It is forecast to operate at full capacity to handle 70,000-75,000 passengers on April 27. The number of passengers is expected to near 100,000 a day on April 30 and May 1.
Some images in which residents leave HCMC for their hometowns to celebrate the holiday:
