Set up illegal docks to collect money

According to Giao thong Newspaper reporters, in recent days, along the two metro lines Cat Linh - Ha Dong and Nhon - Hanoi station, spontaneous parking lots continue to recur at the stations, with vehicles parked in rows under the entrances and exits.

At La Khe station, a spontaneous parking lot occupies the entire area below the station and part of the roadway. This parking lot does not have a posted price list and often charges higher fees than the regulations. Posing as a person in need of parking, the reporter was quoted 10,000 VND/day parking and 20,000 VND/night parking. This lot only accepts motorbikes and bicycles.

At stations with few passengers, some people blatantly park their vehicles under bridges, even locking them to the stair railings.

Similarly, the area around Cau Giay station is also occupied as a spontaneous parking lot. This is also the station with the most parking lots on the Nhon - Hanoi station metro line.

Posing as a passenger parking his vehicle to take the train, the reporter was not given a ticket by the attendant according to the regulations of the Hanoi People's Committee.

The same situation also occurs at Chua Ha and Minh Khai stations. At some other locations, there are no spontaneous parking lots, but people park their vehicles haphazardly on the sidewalks, encroaching on pedestrian lanes.

Legal parking lots are only… on paper

According to the reporter's investigation, since the first days of operating the Cat Linh - Ha Dong metro line, Hanoi Railway Company Limited has distributed thousands of free "Train Guide Booklets" to passengers. Each booklet has a list of 12 parking spots for passengers, equivalent to 12 stations along the line.

In fact, most of the parking spots suggested in the handbook do not accept parking, typically Van Khe gas station (Van Khe station), Van Khe secondary school, Vietnam Academy of Traditional Medicine (Phung Khoang station), 220 Lang street (Lang station)...

According to train passengers, legal parking lots are quite far from the station, so many people are forced to choose spontaneous parking lots.

Similarly, although the Nhon - Hanoi Railway Station Metro line has officially come into operation with thousands of passengers every day, finding a place to park is still a difficult problem for many people.

Since 2022, the Hanoi People's Committee has assigned relevant units to organize parking lots for metro passengers. However, to date, the parking lots still only exist on paper, while illegal parking lots are openly operating.

Finished processing, back to square one

According to research, at the time of planning, the Cat Linh - Ha Dong railway line no longer had space to build parking lots, only Cat Linh station at the beginning of the line and Yen Nghia station at the end of the line were arranged with temporary parking lots.

It is the lack of supply that leads to the proliferation of spontaneous parking lots at train stations, charging high fees.

Hanoi Department of Transport Inspectorate, Task Force 197, handles violations of urban order, and local authorities along the routes have drawn up records and fined dozens of illegal parking lots. However, after the authorities left, everything went back to normal.

Speaking with Giao Thong Newspaper, a representative of the Hanoi Department of Transport Inspectorate said there was no other way but to deal with it continuously.

"We will continue to direct the local traffic inspection team to regularly coordinate with local authorities and police forces to increase inspections, promptly clear and prevent re-offending," he said, adding that he is asking districts along the route to coordinate with Hanoi Railway One Member Co., Ltd. to review convenient locations and soon set up parking lots for people taking the train.