People suffer because of oversized vehicles!

(Baonghean) - Every day, hundreds of oversized trucks carrying timber relentlessly traverse the Tam Hop - Tam Thai road (Tuong Duong district), tearing it apart and constantly creating dust storms that cause hardship for local residents. Officials from Tam Thai commune have reported this issue to the Nghe An Newspaper hotline.

Loose control

"Every day, hundreds of oversized trucks carrying timber from Laos travel along the Tam Hop - Tam Thai road. The scorching heat and thick dust are unbearable for the local people. District officials have even caught dozens of oversized trucks red-handed, calling the police to take action at once, but then everything goes back to how it was before. We can't take it anymore. We hope the media will report on this situation to help the people..." - a Tam Thai commune official said angrily via the Nghe An Newspaper's hotline.

Oversized timber trucks are parked on the Tam Hop - Tam Thai road (photo taken on June 9, 2015).

On April 18, 2015, key officials from Tuong Duong district, while on their way to Tam Hop to attend the commune's Party Congress, encountered 13 trucks carrying timber from Laos. Seeing that most of the trucks showed signs of violating regulations by exceeding the permitted length of their cargo beds and lacking proper registration and inspection, they immediately contacted relevant authorities for inspection. Upon inspection, the Tuong Duong District Police determined that all 13 trucks violated regulations by exceeding the permitted length; 4 trucks had expired inspection certificates. The drivers were fined 21,700,000 VND, the vehicle owners 27,000,000 VND, and the 4 trucks with expired inspection certificates were temporarily seized. The driving licenses of 13 drivers were suspended for one month. Despite this, the problem of oversized trucks continues to plague the Tam Hop - Tam Thai road without improvement.

At 4:30 PM on June 9th, an official from Tam Thai commune reported: "There are more than 10 trucks in Can village; they'll definitely stop in Lung village to wait until nightfall before heading to National Highway 7 to return to the depot. You guys should go down." And indeed, they were right. About 20 minutes later, upon arriving at Lung village (part of Tam Thai commune, right next to National Highway 7), we saw a convoy of Hyundai tractor-trailers loaded with logs, swaying precariously as they pulled in and stopped by the roadside. The weather was scorching hot, 41-42 degrees Celsius, so after stopping, some drivers went to nearby shops for drinks, while others sat in the bushes along the roadside to rest. Upon inspection, all nine trucks were in dilapidated condition, carrying enormous logs that exceeded the truck's length. "Exactly two arm lengths over," said Mr. Ngan Duong Dai (65 years old), a Party member from Lung village, measuring the excess length. Why did they stop here? They're avoiding the police. They're afraid of getting caught or fined if they go out onto the highway now. They wait until it gets dark before continuing on to the beach. They usually leave around 7 PM...

At 7:30 PM, the drivers gradually returned. Headlights blazed brightly, engines roared, and they moved from Lung village across the Canh Trap bridge towards the timber yards in Na Tong (the next village in Tam Thai commune). From Lung village to Na Tong village, they had to travel about 5 km along National Highway 7. With no law enforcement officers around, all nine vehicles entered the timber yard unloading peacefully.

Oversized timber trucks parked on the Tam Hop - Tam Thai road (photo taken on June 9, 2015)

The people are suffering.

Walking along the Tam Thai - Tam Hop road on the afternoon of June 10th, one could truly feel the hardship faced by families living along the route. Every time a truck carrying timber passes by, dust billows into the air. Trees, houses, and belongings are covered in thick layers of dust. The leaves have lost their vibrant green due to the dust. To combat the dust, most families keep their doors and windows tightly closed, and tarpaulins are stretched over their porches; some households with water sources spray the road in front of their houses with water. The entire road is rough and uneven, full of potholes and craters, resulting in areas thick with dust and others soaked in mud. Ms. Lo Thi Huong (from Lung village), whose house is more than 20 meters from the road, but who also suffers from the dust, expressed her frustration: "Every time a timber truck passes by, the wind blows dust into the house like a torrential downpour. We eat in the dust, live in the dust, and sleep in the dust. It's terrible..."

Houses and trees on both sides of the Tam Hop - Tam Thai road are shrouded in dust.

Tam Thai commune has four villages: Lung, Can, Khoi, and Xoong Con, with hundreds of households "living in constant dust." Having a house right next to the road and having previously served as the Party Secretary of Lung village, Mr. Ngan Duong Dai has repeatedly raised this issue on behalf of the villagers to the commune, the district, and at meetings with constituents. In his frustration, he said: "Overloaded and oversized trucks carrying timber rumble along day after day, causing everyone distress. They not only ruin the roads and create dust, but also endanger traffic safety. At night, visibility is further obstructed by these huge trucks and the red dust..."

Ly Ba V., a resident from Pa Lom village, Tam Hop commune, was taking his family to the district hospital for a check-up. The sun was blazing hot and incredibly humid, but both of them had to wear raincoats to protect themselves from the dust. V.'s face was stained yellow with dust, from his hair to his eyebrows. When we asked him about it, he irritably said: "Trucks carrying timber have been running these for years, it's nothing new. Just look at us and you'll know how bad things are because of the trucks and the roads; there's no need to ask..."

Is investing in roads a waste of money?!

To meet the needs for transportation infrastructure, facilitate travel for production and daily life of the people, contribute to socio-economic development, and ensure national defense and security in Tam Thai and Tam Hop communes and surrounding areas of Tuong Duong district, on October 31, 2013, the Provincial People's Committee issued Decision No. 5145/QD.UBND-GT approving the investment project for the construction of the Tam Thai - Tam Hop road with a total investment of over 109 billion VND (from source 30a; provincial budget support; mobilized central government budget support and other legal sources of capital). Mr. Nguyen Van Thang, Head of the Industry and Trade Department of Tuong Duong district, said that according to the plan, the allocated capital for 2015 is 15 billion VND; currently, 12.5 billion VND has been disbursed; it is expected that in the third quarter of 2015, Tuong Duong district will open bidding and proceed with the construction of the roadbed infrastructure.

We wondered: With the continued problem of oversized and overloaded vehicles, will road construction be possible? The Head of the Department of Industry and Trade, Nguyen Van Thang, replied: "There are over 20 businesses transporting timber through the Tam Hop Border Gate. Every day, over 100 large trucks transport large quantities of timber along this route, causing serious damage to the road, environmental pollution, and affecting the lives of people in the two communes of Tam Thai and Tam Hop. During the rainy season, vehicles cannot travel on this road. According to the plan approved by the Provincial People's Committee, the Tam Thai – Tam Hop road will be invested in this year from the national defense and security budget, Program 30a. Because this is a single-lane road, with a high mountain on one side and a deep ravine on the other, transport vehicles will not be able to travel on it during construction. Therefore, to ensure construction proceeds as planned, the district is requesting the Provincial People's Committee to no longer grant permits for timber imports through the Tam Hop Border Gate…"

The Tam Hop - Tam Thai road plays a crucial role, not only in socio-economic development but also in ensuring national defense and security in a border region. Therefore, investing in its construction is absolutely necessary. However, functional forces, especially units stationed in Tuong Duong district such as the police, border guards, and forest rangers, need to strengthen coordination and strictly manage vehicles transporting timber. If the current situation of oversized and overloaded vehicles continues, investing hundreds of billions of dong in building the road will be a tremendous waste, because the road will be dug up again, and the lives of the people will continue to be affected…

Text and photos:N.Lân - Đ.Tuấn