Yen Tu Festival in Quang Ninh province, Tran Temple in Nam Dinh province, Trang An Bai Dinh in Ninh Binh province and Huong Pagoda in Hanoi are Vietnam’s major spring festivals which attract millions of visitors each year. In some places, visitors have to climb mountains or use waterway vehicles. Therefore, ensuring safety for visitors should be a top priority.
Vietnam Business Forum interviewed Mr Tran Quoc Trung, Deputy Director of Waterway Traffic Police Department on ensuring safety for travellers in festivals such as Huong Pagoda, Trang An, where visitors travel by boat. Giang Tu reports.
People travel to Huong Pagoda, Tam Coc-Bich Dong, Trang An–Ninh Binh by waterway. Do you think that those means of transport are safe enough for visitors?
Through the inspection of vehicles catering for tourists visiting Huong Pagoda, Yen Stream, Tam Coc-Bich Dong, Trang An-Ninh Binh and other early spring festivals, we found that all vehicles having more than 12 seats are registered. It is likely that almost all vehicles are technically safe and have permission from safety control agencies. However, the self - designed means of transport made of wood or metal, although registered, are not granted quality control certificates from the authorized agencies, the People’s Committee and Department of Transport. On the route to Huong Pagoda, about 4,450 means of transport strictly implemented Circular 15 of the Ministry of Transport.
Did you have any plan to propagate and train vehicles’ owners, ferrymen before the festival season?
Waterway police forces and traffic police forces of localities, and agencies of journalism and communication, and related agencies have been communicating traffic rules as well as regulations of the Ministry of Transport (MoT) to vehicles’ owners, drivers and dock staff in order to guarantee safety for visitors during festival season.
Both tourists and vehicle owners are aware of dangers resulting from overloaded vehicles or badly – equipped ones, but most of them ignore it and keep using those means of transport. How can this problem be addressed?
Emergency centres have been established to ensure safety for visitors, for example in Den Trinh, Thien Phu – Huong Pagoda. Plus, the authorized agencies, waterway policemen and inspectors regulated the allowed number of passengers per vessel under the domestic waterway provisions.
Do you have any recommendations for tourists travelling by water in general and tourists to Huong Pagoda in particular?
For visitors attending the festival, especially those who travel to festivals by waterway vehicles, they need to comply with regulations set out by the festival’s management board. No rushing, no pushing and moving in order, so that can keep everyone safe in the festivals.
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