On September 11, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Construction coordinated with the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee of Ho Chi Minh City to organize a conference to criticize the Project on controlling emissions of vehicles in the city.
According to the proposal, from July 2027, Ho Chi Minh City will pilot a low-emission zone (LEZ) in the core central area of about 930 ha and Thu Thiem New Urban Area. The total area is about 16.6 km2, with more than 176,200 people, high traffic density and high emissions.
From the beginning of 2029, LEZ is expected to expand to Ring Road 2 area, about 280 km2 wide, with a population of about 6.17 million people, with a total traffic volume of about 11.56 million vehicles/day.
The project builds a roadmap for controlling vehicles by group, with requirements for emission standards and increasing use of clean energy. The goal is that by 2035, most vehicles operating in LEZs will use electricity or green energy; the whole city will complete the conversion by 2040.
Mr. Tomiki Yanagawa - Member of the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers Association (VAMA) - said that Ho Chi Minh City needs to fully assess the socio-economic and automotive impacts before applying the transition roadmap.
According to him, the goal of 100% pure electric vehicles in LEZs by 2035 may cause people to delay buying cars, affecting the market, assembly plants and supporting industries.
VAMA proposes a multi-tech roadmap, including hybrid vehicles (HEV), external-charged hybrid vehicles (PHEV) and pure electric vehicles (BEV), instead of focusing on a single technology.
Regarding LEZs, Mr. Yanagawa said that the 18-month pilot period is too short. Ho Chi Minh City should pilot in a small scope in the period 2027-2030, assess the effectiveness and then gradually expand from 2030 to 2040; Ring Road 2 area can be considered in the period 2040-2050, depending on the readiness of infrastructure and the market.
VAMA also proposed to manage vehicles according to emission standards instead of banning by fuel type. Vehicles in circulation are still allowed to operate if they meet the standards.
For newly registered vehicles, VAMA proposes that by 2040, 100% of electrified vehicles include HEV, PHEV and BEV; by 2050, 100% of BEV vehicles and zero-emission vehicles.
The Association also proposed policies to support people and businesses such as reducing temporary registration fees for electrified vehicles, supporting the exchange of old vehicles and building mechanisms for collecting, processing, and recycling batteries. The policy also needs to take into account small and medium-sized enterprises, especially the group using light trucks and pickup trucks.
Mr. Ta Long Hy - Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Transport Association - agreed with the policy of green energy conversion but said that a suitable roadmap is needed to avoid rushing.
According to Mr. Hy, vehicles are not only for travel but also a "meal crop" for many people and businesses. Therefore, the conversion time needs to consider the financial capacity, scale and specific operations of each group.
He proposed recognizing self-charged hybrid vehicles (HEV) as green transition vehicles. For businesses that have invested in thousands of hybrid vehicles, there needs to be a transition mechanism, allowing continued operation for 2-3 more years instead of being forced to replace them right from 2030.
Charging station infrastructure is also identified as an important factor. Ho Chi Minh City needs to plan a network of charging stations at gas stations, apartments, residential areas and prioritize high-capacity charging stations to facilitate people and businesses.
Mr. Hy suggested that support policies must be substantive, procedures simple, disbursement timely, and support levels appropriate to the value of vehicles. People who actively convert early also need to enjoy corresponding incentives.
At the same time, Ho Chi Minh City needs to develop a separate project on recovering, recycling and treating waste batteries and accumulators as the number of electric vehicles increases.
Mr. Vo Khanh Hung - Deputy Director of Ho Chi Minh City Department of Construction - said that this is a new project, with a wide scope of impact, directly related to people's lives and business operations.
Therefore, controlling and limiting vehicles must go along with the roadmap of vehicle conversion, developing public passenger transport, charging station infrastructure, inspection capacity, management systems and support policies for affected groups.
The Department of Construction will summarize, receive, explain and revise the draft project and draft resolution before submitting it to competent authorities for consideration and decision.
