The last ferries take passengers across the river
On the morning of July 17, Giao thong Newspaper reporters were present at the Rung ferry terminal. As usual, the first Rung ferry trip still starts at 4:30 every day and ends at 20:30. The number of people and vehicles passing through the Rung ferry terminal today is still crowded. The old operating building, the ticket checking station for the Rung ferry are still there, and the shops today still sell snacks to passengers when crossing the ferry as usual.
However, the familiar scene for nearly 50 years at Rung ferry will only last until the last ferry leaves at 8:30 p.m. tonight. From 0:00 a.m. on July 18, Ben Rung bridge will officially come into operation, replacing Rung ferry in carrying passengers across the river on the Hai Phong - Quang Ninh route and vice versa.
A ferry carrying people across the river at Rung wharf.
Riding his motorbike onto the Rung ferry on the morning of July 17, Mr. Nguyen Viet Ha (residing in Thuy Nguyen district, Hai Phong city) shared that he works in Quang Yen town (Quang Ninh) so he takes this ferry every day.
"Today, I will take the last ferry trips across Ben Rung. It is hard to avoid feeling nostalgic because I have been attached to the ferry, the wharf, and this stretch of river every day. But from tomorrow, I will be able to ride a motorbike across Ben Rung bridge, which will definitely be more convenient and faster," Mr. Ha shared.
Mr. Le Hoang Nguyen (residing in Quang Yen town) - a regular passenger of the ferry station said, "Every day I go back and forth through this ferry station to Hai Phong to work at Pha Rung Shipyard."
"I am very happy that the Ben Rung bridge will soon be put into operation, which will help me and everyone else travel more conveniently. However, for nearly 10 years, I have been traveling on these ferries every day, sometimes having breakfast right at the waiting room, which makes me feel regretful and nostalgic because today will be the last ferry I take to work."
Rung ferry terminal will stop operating after the Ben Rung bridge project officially opens to traffic on the afternoon of July 17 and will come into operation from 0:00 on July 18.
Today, Mrs. Yen’s shop along Highway 10 in Thuy Nguyen District still serves customers crossing the Rung ferry as usual. Glasses of iced tea, guava leaf water, a few boiled chicken and duck eggs, peanut candies, chips, banh gio, and banh nuong are still displayed on the small table, but in smaller quantities than usual.
"Today is the last ferry trip, so I haven't bought any new candy for a few days. I'll sell it today and then have to find another job," said Ms. Yen.
According to Ms. Yen, ferry passengers are mainly workers and small traders who regularly travel during the day from Quang Ninh to Hai Phong and vice versa.
"Every day, they are busy with work and life pressure, so even though they have known each other on the ferries, they rarely talk or exchange information with each other. However, in recent days, they have shared more with each other and the topic is nothing other than the ferry terminal's impending shutdown," Ms. Yen confided.
Rung ferry terminal will no longer be crowded with people getting on and off the ferry after nearly 50 years of operation.
Complete the 45-year historical mission
Put into operation since 1979, going through nearly half a century of ups and downs from a wooden ferry with hand-rowing, to a wooden ferry and then to an iron ferry, the Rung ferry is now preparing to complete its mission.
Rung Ferry used to play an important role in ensuring traffic on Highway 10 connecting Quang Ninh with Hai Phong and going to Hai Duong, Thai Binh and Nam Dinh provinces.
However, since the construction of Da Bac bridge and the adjustment of National Highway 10, the number of people and vehicles passing through Rung ferry has also decreased day by day.
In the 90s, Rung ferry terminal became the busiest trading point in Hai Phong. Large ferries were packed with people and all kinds of vehicles because this was the only and shortest route from Hai Phong to Quang Ninh.
Mr. Nguyen Van Khuong, a bus driver who used to run this route, recalled: "Back then, Rung ferry station also had bus trips running Hai Phong - Quang Ninh - Mong Cai with high frequency. The goods and passengers passing through the ferry station amounted to thousands of people and hundreds of vehicles, not as few as now."
When Da Bac Bridge was inaugurated in 2005, fewer vehicles passed through the Rung ferry, so the wharf gradually became less crowded. Currently, only small traders and workers from Quang Yen town and Thuy Nguyen district regularly pass by.
The Ben Rung bridge project has been completed and officially put into operation since 0:00 on July 18.
Mr. Do Quang Huy, a captain at Ben Rung ferry, shared: "Having worked at this ferry terminal for nearly 20 years, we have long considered this place our second home. The ferry is about to stop operating, everyone is both happy and a little sad, because with the bridge, people have the opportunity to travel more conveniently, but it is also the time when 31 officers and employees of the terminal have to move to new jobs and new units."
In 2022, the Ben Rung bridge project connecting Thuy Nguyen district (Hai Phong) with Quang Yen town (Quang Ninh) with a total investment of nearly 2,000 billion VND was started. From 0:00 on July 18, the above project will officially come into operation and also the time when the historical mission of the Rung ferry will stop. \Ben Rung bridge is built at a location about 3.7km upstream from the current Rung ferry, on the Hai Phong side in Gia Duc commune, Thuy Nguyen district, about 4.3km from the Chanh river bridge and about 6.4km from National Highway 18.
Video: Overview of Ben Rung bridge project before putting into operation.
Ben Rung Bridge project is over 1.86km long, the main bridge and approach bridges are 21.5m wide, the main bridge consists of 4 spans, the approach bridge consists of 34 spans, the bridge abutments are made of reinforced concrete.
The approach roads at both ends of the bridge are 410m long, with a 22.5m wide roadbed, including 4 motor vehicle lanes, 2 mixed lanes, safety strip, median strip, unreinforced pavement, lighting system, and road and waterway signs.
Ben Rung Bridge will contribute to creating an inter-regional traffic connection system, meeting the travel and convenient freight transport needs of the people of Thuy Nguyen district (Hai Phong) and Quang Yen town (Quang Ninh). People of Quang Yen town and Thuy Nguyen district will not have to wait 30-60 minutes for the Rung ferry, or have to travel 40km to National Highway 18 and then turn around to National Highway 10 as before.
Source: https://www.baogiaothong.vn/nhung-chuyen-pha-cuoi-cung-tai-ben-rung-192240717122503347.htm
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