The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport, the Public Transport Management Center and transport businesses are making efforts to recruit and create conditions for drivers to take the exam to upgrade their driver's license to meet the requirements for driving buses according to regulations.
Shortage of nearly 500 bus drivers
In recent years, the bus network in Ho Chi Minh City has changed positively, attracting a large number of passengers.
Many bus routes have been replaced with new vehicles with modern equipment, using clean energy... bringing a better, more civilized experience to people.
Units are making efforts to recruit and solve the shortage of bus drivers.
However, this type of public transport is facing new difficulties.
According to Mr. Pham Khanh Hung, Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport, in 2024, Ho Chi Minh City will have about 601 drivers with Class D driving licenses assigned to operate on bus routes with a capacity of 30 - 47 seats.
When the Law on Road Traffic Safety comes into effect, it stipulates that class D2 driving licenses are issued to drivers of passenger cars (including buses) with up to 29 seats (excluding the driver's seat) and class D licenses are issued to drivers of passenger cars (including buses) with more than 29 seats (excluding the driver's seat).
Previously, the Road Traffic Law stipulated that a class D driving license was issued to drivers of passenger cars with 10 to 30 seats.
Therefore, drivers with class D driving licenses will not be eligible to drive vehicles with more than 30 seats from January 1.
Faced with this situation, since mid-2024, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport has directed the Public Transport Management Center to work with transport units to proactively recruit and arrange suitable drivers.
To date, 81 drivers have registered for the upgrade exam and 39 new people have been recruited. However, the city is still short of about 481 bus drivers (80%).
Recruitment efforts, support for upgrading exams
Mr. Pham Vuong Bao, Deputy Director of the Public Transport Management Center, said that recently, he has proactively worked with bus transport businesses in the city to count the number of affected drivers, and at the same time reported and proposed support solutions to the Department of Transport.
Ho Chi Minh City needs to add and upgrade hundreds of bus drivers.
In particular, directing the Examination Management Department to work with training centers, prioritizing organizing driver's license upgrade classes for qualified bus drivers.
At the same time, transport businesses also proactively implemented support packages, paying 100% of upgrade tuition fees to encourage drivers to participate in training.
Currently, according to reports from bus transport businesses in the area, 8 units have taken the initiative in the number of drivers, ensuring stable operations on the routes they undertake. 6 units still lack drivers, which has a certain impact on the operation of bus routes.
According to Mr. Bao, the current shortage of bus drivers is still under control because according to passenger travel rules, the first quarter of each year has the lowest travel demand due to the holidays and Tet.
Currently, the bus system is adjusting to reduce frequency. This partly reduces the pressure of driver shortage on the units.
Regarding salary, Mr. Bao said that currently, bus drivers in Ho Chi Minh City have an average income of 14 - 17 million VND/month, depending on the route distance and vehicle type. This is a relatively good income, competitive compared to the general level.
However, recruitment still faces many obstacles because buses have to compete for labor with other types of transport such as technology cars, fixed-route inter-provincial buses, etc.
Besides, the characteristic of buses is that they often have to travel in crowded traffic conditions, continuously entering and exiting stations, and under high pressure.
"The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport and the Public Transport Management Center continue to closely coordinate with transport businesses, speed up the recruitment, training and support process for drivers to upgrade their licenses, ensuring the bus system operates stably, meeting the travel needs of the people," said Mr. Bao.
Bus drivers have to leave early and come back late.
Mr. Pham Van Tram, bus driver on route 20 (Ben Thanh - Nha Be) shared that the job of a bus driver is quite hard, having to wake up early and come home late.
He had to wake up at 3:30 a.m. to prepare, and pick up the driver at 4:30 a.m. At the end of a working day, the driver had to bring the car back to the parking lot, check it, add fuel, clean up... many days he had to wait until 10-11 p.m. to get home.
"We have been working for a long time so we are used to the pace of work as well as the pressure, but it is quite difficult for new people to adapt. Maybe that is why it is difficult to recruit bus drivers," Mr. Tram shared.
Similarly, a bus driver on route 19 (Ben Thanh - National University) expressed that currently, due to a lack of drivers, drivers work all week, without days off.
Although the income is higher than before, about 19 - 20 million VND/month, it is quite difficult.
Source: https://www.baogiaothong.vn/tphcm-giai-bai-toan-thieu-tai-xe-xe-buyt-192250213195650592.htm
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