Encourage the development of passenger transport by bus

Intra-provincial bus routes serve well the travel needs of people in the province.

With advantages such as cheap fares and continuous operation all day, buses are chosen by many people, especially students, workers. The development of this public transport method also helps reduce the use of personal vehicles for circulation, leading to a reduction in vehicle density on the road, reducing traffic jams and accidents, minimizing environmental pollution, and improving urban civilization. According to statistics from the Department of Construction, the province currently has 10 bus routes operating stably with a total of 75 vehicles (including 32 small buses with a capacity of less than 40 passengers/vehicle and 43 medium buses with a capacity of 40-60 passengers/vehicle). There are 8 intra-provincial bus routes and 2 inter-provincial bus routes from Nam Dinh city to Ha Nam and Ninh Binh provinces and vice versa, operated by Dai Duy Automobile Company Limited and Xuan Thieu Joint Stock Company. In addition, from January 2024, Dai Duy Automobile Company Limited joined with Hanoi Passenger Transport Joint Stock Company (Hanoi city) to operate bus route 215 from My Dinh Bus Station (Hanoi city) - Truc Ninh District Central Bus Station. In 2024, the province's bus routes served a total of 94,170 trips with over 2.6 million passengers; making an important contribution to ensuring traffic safety and order.

All intra-provincial bus routes start at Nam Dinh city with 3 routes ending at Giao Thuy district (routes ND01; ND08A; ND10); Hai Hau, Nghia Hung, Xuan Truong, Y Yen, Truc Ninh districts each have 1 bus route (route ND02 to Thinh Long town, Hai Hau; route ND03 to Dong Binh town, Nghia Hung; route ND06B to Vinh Tu bridge, Yen Loi commune, Y Yen; route ND-07 to Truc Khang commune, Truc Ninh and route ND08B to Xuan Dai commune, Xuan Truong). Intra-provincial bus routes operate continuously from 5am to 6pm every day, the highest fare for the entire route is 35,000 VND/person; the average one-way fare is 23,000 VND/person, the quality of vehicles and the service attitude of staff are constantly improved; The system of reasonable pick-up/drop-off stops, conveniently connected to the transportation system, hospitals, schools and local centers, has well served the diverse needs of passengers in the province; contributing to the complete development of the public passenger transport system by bus in a civilized, modern and safe direction.

Along with the intra-provincial bus routes, the inter-provincial bus routes NH05 (Nam Dinh - Ha Nam ) and 215 (Truc Ninh Bus Station - My Dinh Bus Station) are also operating stably, meeting the travel needs of the people, forming the habit of using buses for people to travel, especially for those who have to travel frequently between localities (study, work, do business or go to the hospital). NH05 bus route has a total distance of 75km; starting point is Truc Ninh bus station, Co Le town (Truc Ninh) and ending point is Hanoi University of Industry, campus 3 (Ha Nam). NH05 bus route has a total of 8 buses (each bus has a capacity of 19 seats, 1 standing place) with a frequency of 40 minutes/trip during peak hours; 50 minutes/trip during off-peak hours; Operating hours are from 5:10 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. with a total of 36 trips per day (18 trips per day). The fare for the entire route of NH05 bus is 60,000 VND/passenger; within a leg is 10,000 VND/passenger; consecutive legs is 20,000 VND/passenger; every other leg is 30,000 VND/passenger; every two legs is 45,000 VND/passenger.

Bus route 215 has a distance of 112km from My Dinh Bus Station (Hanoi city) - to Truc Ninh Bus Station (Nam Dinh) with operating hours during the day: Opening at the first stop A at 5am, at the first stop B at 4am; closing at the first stop A at 8pm, at the first stop B at 7pm; bus departures every 30 minutes, total of 62 trips/day; ticket price for the whole route is 100,000 VND/trip, single-trip tickets include 30-50-70 thousand VND (ticket price from Nam Dinh city to My Dinh Bus Station is 85,000 VND/trip).

Mr. Hoang Tuan Anh, Deputy Director of Dai Duy Automobile Company Limited, the unit participating in the operation of bus route 215, said: To better meet the demand for passenger transport by bus, in early April 2025, the Company invested over 22 billion VND to equip 20 Ford Transit vehicles with 16 seats/vehicle to replace the old vehicles (51-seat and standing vehicles), radically improving the quality of passenger service. The passenger/route coefficient of bus route 215 has been significantly increased, reaching 70-80%. It is expected that in the fourth quarter of 2025, the Company will continue to invest in 10-20 more vehicles of the same type to better serve the travel needs of people during peak times. Particularly for inter-provincial bus route NN11 (Nam Dinh - Ninh Binh), the operating unit has been heavily affected by the COVID-19 epidemic, so it has requested to temporarily suspend operations. The Department of Construction is encouraging and motivating bus passenger transport businesses to invest in vehicles and human resources to resume operations, contributing to meeting people's travel needs.

To develop passenger transport by bus, on December 10, 2024, the Provincial People's Council issued Resolution No. 133/2024/NQ-HDND stipulating the level of interest rate support for loans at credit institutions for bus investment projects in Nam Dinh province from the provincial budget. Accordingly, the interest rate support level for 1 project owner is 3%/year calculated on the actual loan balance and not exceeding 200 million VND/year. For projects investing in vehicles using electricity and green energy, the support amount for 1 project owner is 4%/year calculated on the actual loan balance and not exceeding 300 million VND/year; Interest support period is based on the actual loan period, but not exceeding 5 years. For investment in vehicles using electricity and green energy, the maximum interest support period is not more than 7 years (calculated from the date of disbursement according to the credit contract with the credit institution).

Implementing the resolution of the Provincial People's Council, in the coming time, the Department of Construction will continue to research and review specialized planning to advise the Provincial People's Committee on solutions to develop bus routes; direct specialized units and transport enterprises to invest in upgrading vehicles, improving quality and expanding bus service areas; research investment, innovation, synchronous renovation and rationalization of the infrastructure system serving public passenger transport by bus to better serve the travel and trade needs of the people, contributing to the socio-economic development of the province.

Article and photos: Thanh Trung

Source: https://baonamdinh.vn/kinh-te/202504/khuyen-khich-phat-trienvan-taikhach-bang-xe-buyt-20258da/