Nguyen Tat Thanh Street connects District 7, District 4 and District 1 with a length of less than 3km, often haunting people when traveling here, especially during rush hour.
In the first 9 months of 2024, this route recorded 811 traffic jams, an average of more than 3 traffic jams per day, topping the list of traffic jams in Ho Chi Minh City.
In 2023, this number was no less impressive, reaching 978 traffic jams, making Nguyen Tat Thanh Street the city's traffic "hot spot".
According to Mr. Nguyen Kien Giang - Deputy Head of Road Infrastructure Management Division (Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport), Nguyen Tat Thanh Street is currently overloaded by up to 140%, causing constant traffic congestion.
Even a small incident, such as people stopping to put on raincoats or light rain, can cause the entire route to be severely congested.
The reason is that this is the main artery connecting the southern area with the center of Ho Chi Minh City. On the other hand, Saigon Port has not been relocated according to the policy of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee. The continuous movement of container trucks and heavy trucks in and out of the port has put great pressure on the traffic system, especially the Tan Thuan 1 and Tan Thuan 2 bridge areas.
Although it is the most congested road in Ho Chi Minh City, a representative of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport said that from now until 2030, Nguyen Tat Thanh Street is not on the list of priority expansion projects in Ho Chi Minh City.
In recent times, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport has applied many measures to reduce traffic congestion on Nguyen Tat Thanh Street. The Department of Transport has closed some intersections on this street and is studying additional solutions to regulate traffic at the Nguyen Tat Thanh - Hoang Dieu intersection.
Monitoring and adjusting traffic light duration at key points along the route, especially at the beginning and end of the route, has also been enhanced.
Authorities regularly exchange information with traffic police to promptly handle traffic incidents and minimize prolonged congestion.
In the long term, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport plans to adjust the organization of one-way traffic across Tan Thuan 2 Bridge from District 4 to District 7 as soon as Saigon Port is relocated.
At the same time, the Department of Transport is also speeding up the investment and construction of other important bridges and roads such as Nguyen Khoi Bridge (connecting District 7, District 4 and District 1), Binh Tien Bridge and Thu Thiem 4 Bridge.
In which, Thu Thiem 4 bridge connects from Huynh Tan Phat street, the end of Luu Trong Lu street, crosses Saigon river to Thu Thiem new urban area and connects directly to the road axis through Thu Thiem 1 bridge, Nguyen Huu Canh street.
These projects are expected to help reduce traffic pressure on Nguyen Tat Thanh route and the southern area of Ho Chi Minh City.