Large vehicles on Nguyễn Duy Trinh Street in HCM City’s District 2. — Photo tuoitre.vn

HCM CITY — Most transport companies in HCM City lack parking space, and many resort to parking their lorries and container trucks on roads.

The parking space available in the city is in fact only 20-28 per cent of what is set out in its master plan for developing transportation.

Large trucks are now often parked on roads closed to traffic, posing a danger to other users.

Besides, a number of accidents have been caused by giant vehicles driving on restricted roads to reach unauthorised parking lots.

Last month many lorries and container trucks were found parked on streets like Nguyễn Duy Trinh (District 2), Nguyễn Xiển and Đỗ Xuân Hợp (District 9) and Huỳnh Tấn Phát (District 7). Some were even found on restricted roads and areas.

One of the drivers parking in a restricted road said it is very difficult to find parking space for trucks in the area and he drives his truck away if traffic police officers or other officials arrive.

Bùi Văn Quân, chairman of the HCM City Freight Forwarders Association, said hundreds of forwarders, especially cargo transport companies in District 9, face difficulties since there is no parking space for their trucks. Many of them have to park on roads or lease space in private lots.

“Transport firms pay large amounts of money for parking and as fines for violations,” he was quoted as saying by Tuổi Trẻ (Youth) newspaper.

A number of them have had to suspend their operations due to losses, he added.

The association has urged city authorities to use vacant plots of land in districts 9 and 2 as temporary parking lots, pointing out that thousands of trucks would otherwise have no parking space in the two.

Temporary parking lots

Đỗ Ngọc Hải, head of city Department of Transport’s road transport management division, said the lack of parking space has affected both passenger and cargo transport.

It also has other adverse impacts, such as an increase in the number of accidents, he said.

He blamed the situation on the lack of land for construction of parking lots and terminals.

The association’s proposal that the city should lease land in districts 2 and 9 and build temporary parking lots was rejected by the department since the proposed areas do not meet the conditions required for building parking lots, he explained.

The department would consider other areas in districts 2, 9 and Nhà Bè and complete construction works expeditiously, he added. — VNS