People expect
Ms. Hoang Hai, who lives in Dong Ngac (Bac Tu Liem, Hanoi) shared that her company is in Hai Ba Trung district, more than 15km from her house. To get to the company, she has to take 2 bus trips. Accordingly, she will have to take the bus from her house to Long Bien transfer station, then from Long Bien take another trip to Hai Ba Trung.
“In the early days of taking the bus, I took whatever bus was convenient. However, after many times of “accumulating experience”, for the Long Bien to Hai Ba Trung route, I had to wait for the E07 electric bus route” - Ms. Hai shared.
The reason Ms. Hai chose the electric bus is because it is less noisy, smokeless, odorless, and runs very smoothly. Ms. Hai expressed that she really hopes that Hanoi can soon completely switch to electric buses.
Sharing the same thought with Ms. Hai, Mr. Quach Van Duong, who works in Cau Giay, shared that he has just moved to Vinhomes Smart City - Tay Mo urban area for more than a year now. When he first moved to the urban area, Mr. Duong chose to go to work by motorbike. Sometimes he uses bus route 05 as option 2.
When switching to electric buses, he clearly saw the benefits such as buses running on time, no noise, no smell. Therefore, for the past 6 months, he has completely switched to the bus to work. Mr. Duong expressed his wish that the bus system would be more synchronized so that people could all take the bus to avoid traffic jams.
From determination to action
Sharing about the orientation of converting public transport vehicles to electric buses, Mr. Thai Ho Phuong - Director of the Public Transport Management Center, Hanoi Department of Transport - said that the city has set a goal of developing a plan and roadmap to convert buses to electric and green energy in the city in accordance with the roadmap approved in Decision 876.
Along with that is the proposal of synchronous solutions, ensuring effective implementation of the conversion roadmap, achieving 100% electric buses by 2035.
To achieve this goal, Hanoi has developed a roadmap, implemented necessary solutions and conditions; clearly assigned responsibilities and implementation progress of relevant sectors and units; as well as proposed related mechanisms and policies.
Regarding the electric bus charging station system, there are currently only 2 installation locations of Vinbus Company, serving 10 routes. Each charging station has 32 and 39 charging posts, respectively, with a capacity of 120 - 150kWh, meeting the need to charge 100% of the battery of the entire vehicle.
To further promote the conversion to electric buses, the city proposes three scenarios as follows:
Scenario 1: 100% electric buses. Number of vehicles after conversion: 2,433 vehicles.
Scenario 2: 70% electric buses, 30% LNG/CNG buses. Number of vehicles after conversion: 2,212 vehicles (1,592 electric vehicles and 620 LNG/CNG vehicles).
Scenario 3: 50% electric buses, 50% LNG/CNG buses. Number of vehicles after conversion: 2,076 vehicles (1,100 electric vehicles and 976 LNG/CNG vehicles).
According to Mr. Phuong, based on the practical situation, the city proposes to implement scenario 3 in the short term. When conditions permit, it will strive to implement scenario 2 or even scenario 1.
Along with state agencies, in order to implement the goal of switching to electric buses, many businesses in Vietnam are pioneering practical actions.
As soon as it understood the trend and determination of the city, Hanoi Transport Corporation (Transerco) immediately officially spent more than 74 billion VND to buy 17 electric buses (60 seats) and install 8 120kW charging stations worth 4.32 billion VND from the joint venture VinFast and VGREEN. This drastic action marked an important step forward in modernizing the capital's public transport system.
General Director of Hanoi Transport Corporation (Transerco) Nguyen Thanh Nam shared that in 2024, Transerco has developed and reported to the Hanoi People's Committee and the Hanoi Department of Transport a project to switch to green energy vehicles. Based on the Government's roadmap for using clean energy buses, Transerco has developed a specific plan for routes whose contracts expire in 2024; proposed conditions and implementation mechanisms for the City to support implementation such as loan interest support, construction of charging station infrastructure, etc.
It can be said that with specific and practical actions, pioneering enterprises have been accompanying the Capital towards a civilized and clean environment. By 2035, on the streets of the Capital, there will only be the "green color" of electric buses and buses running on clean energy.
Hanoi currently has 1,905 subsidized buses, of which 281 use clean energy (139 CNG and 142 electric buses) and over 1,200 meet Euro 4 emission standards or higher. To date, the operation of electric bus routes has contributed to reducing 36,000 tons of CO2.
