The Hanoi People’s Committee and Île-de-France region worked together from 2002 to 2008 to apply for funding from the European Commission via the Asia Urbs and Asia ProEco programs in order to implement public transport improvement projects in Hanoi. The Asia Trans project (2002-2005) was carried out under a partnership arrangement with the Brussels-Capital region and the Ecotrans project (2006-2008), with additional support received from the city of Hanover.
The goal was to assist the municipality to put in place a new bus network to replace the colonial era tramway lines that had been dismantled in the late 1980s. An international team of French and German experts was put together within the Hanoi Transport Management and Operation Center (TRAMOC).
This ongoing presence with colleagues on the Vietnamese side has facilitated the implementation of many initiatives. Local capacity building focused notably on institutional organization, network planning and stepping up productivity. Statistical surveys made it possible, for the first time, to have a reliable database on network use, rounded out by the development of a GIS. Quality of service to users was also dealt with when drawing up schematic network plans and introducing the electronic ticketing card.
Work on rolling stock was fleshed out by the delivery of 50 Renault buses that had been retired from the Paris Public Transport Company (RATP in French) fleet. Specialists from RATP also came to Hanoi to help design and supervise the construction of a bus maintenance depot and service it with new European equipment, as well as to provide ongoing training for some 20 bus drivers that would in turn become trainers. This made it possible to reinforce the safety and reliability of the buses on the one hand and reduce environmental pollution significantly on the other.
Model infrastructure was also put in, aiming to facilitate passenger access to the busses. A bus interchange for 15 lines was put in at the city entrance and plans for revamping the highway system were developed. A second interchange was implemented and put in operation at the foot of the well-known Long Bien Bridge built in the early 1900s.
These actions, combined with a major budget contribution from the municipality in the form of operator grants have had a major impact on the number of people using the network. The annual mass transit user figure jumped from 10 million in 2001 to 300 million in 2007! At the same time, the number of lines grew five-fold.
Beyond this direct effect on the operation of public transit in the capital, the Asia Trans and Ecotrans projects have also played a major role in mobilizing bi- and multilateral donors to fund more ambitious projects. The World Bank, which was giving primary importance to road infrastructure in the 1990s, decided to get involved in the extension phase of European projects. It is now funding the construction of two high-capacity bus lines (articulated buses running in dedicated right-of-ways) based on the Bogota and Curitiba models. The project is anticipated to be completed by 2010.
Useful links:
TRAMOC Web site: www.tramoc.com.vn