'Loopholes' in managing consigned goods on passenger buses

(Baonghean) - No paperwork, delivery procedures, low cost, fast shipping time, the form of consigning goods on passenger buses is increasingly chosen by many people. However, this convenience has also caused many serious consequences, requiring strict management of goods consignment activities.

Sending and receiving is so easy

Posing as someone who needed to send a package to the mountainous district of Que Phong, we approached the BN bus station at 5am, in front of the gate of Vinh Bus Station (Le Loi Street, Vinh City), the driver quickly picked up the package and put it in the trunk. Without asking what the package was, without needing a receipt, just asking for the recipient's phone number to contact when arriving at the final stop and a transaction fee of 50,000 VND, the package was quickly placed on the vehicle.

Not only BN bus company, sending and receiving goods on passenger buses is very simple, mainly based on the reputation of the bus company and verbal agreement between the two parties, not subject to any constraints in terms of procedures, invoices, or documents. Not only receiving goods at the main bus stations, most bus companies also facilitate customers by receiving goods along the way, even at home.

The number of passengers and goods entering and leaving Vinh Bus Station every day is very large, but management is still not strict. Photo: PC

The ease of sending and receiving goods has helped this service gradually become a familiar choice whenever people need to transport goods within and outside the province. However, many consequences have arisen from here. There have been many cases of passenger vans transporting contraband, prohibited goods, cash transactions, and flammable goods, making the form of transporting goods by this type of vehicle potentially risky.

Most recently, the theft of foreign currency equivalent to 6.1 billion VND on the Tuan Thuy sleeper bus running from Vinh to Hanoi shocked public opinion. On February 17, according to the report of the bus owner to the authorities, on the evening of February 15, the bus company received a package from Ms. Pham Thi Mien, residing in Block 2, Hong Son Ward, Vinh City, to be delivered to a person in Hanoi. The package was left in the car's cabinet, and on the morning of February 16 - when the bus arrived at Nuoc Ngam Bus Station (Hanoi), the package was discovered to be missing.

Vinh City Police promptly investigated and arrested two suspects for theft. The case was solved in a short time, helping to stabilize the security situation in the area, but at the same time, it also raised many concerns about the laxity in the management of consignment goods on passenger bus routes.

Looking back at the records of violations in transporting goods on passenger buses, one cannot help but be startled by the arbitrariness and negligence of vehicle owners when accepting to transport flammable and explosive goods. A typical example is the explosion of an oxygen tank on a Thuan Sang passenger bus in February 2014, while traveling through Dien Hong commune, Dien Chau district, which killed 2 people on the spot and injured 14 others. Or, the explosion originated from a "gift package" that was checked in on the passenger bus, which was actually a homemade mine hidden in the shape of a music speaker, which occurred at the end of September 2014, seriously injuring 3 people... In particular, every year, before Tet, the authorities arrest dozens of cases of transporting large quantities of firecrackers on passenger buses.

“Gaps” in management

Although there have been many unfortunate incidents in the transportation of consigned goods, transportation businesses have not made many positive changes in inspection and control. It is known that in Nghe An province, apart from a few businesses that have transaction offices and fully perform the steps of receiving, confirming, checking, transporting... such as Van Minh Company Limited, Phuc Loi International Travel Joint Stock Company... the majority believe that "it is enough to rely on mutual trust"!

In fact, many drivers and assistants see transporting goods as an opportunity to earn additional income in addition to the fixed salary paid by the vehicle owner. It is also difficult for vehicle owners to control this additional transportation.

Passenger vans pick up passengers and deliver goods along National Highway 1A in Dien Chau district. Photo: Mai Giang

At the bus stations, the control work is also quite loose. According to Mr. Vu Hoang Huynh - Head of Vinh Bus Station, when vehicles enter and exit the gate, the station's security team always monitors, but only relies on visual information and does not have technical support tools. With the naked eye, if passengers or bus operators are detected transporting prohibited goods or flammable goods such as gas cylinders, oxygen cylinders, gasoline, oil, etc., they will definitely not be allowed to enter the station. Any vehicle owner who does not comply will be reminded, the most severe measure is to suspend the vehicle and stop it from leaving the station.

However, Mr. Huynh also admitted that once the goods are packaged, it is very difficult to detect violations or not, "that responsibility belongs to the driver, bus assistant, and cooperative business owner, because the bus station staff do not have the right to open the goods to check". This situation of management by... the naked eye occurs at 14 large and small bus stations throughout the province.

Through research, it is known that there are currently no regulations prohibiting passenger transport companies from transporting goods, only strictly prohibiting the transportation of some prohibited items such as weapons, ammunition, explosives, drugs, opium, stimulants, obscene cultural products...

Mr. Nguyen Viet Hung - Head of Transport Management Department, Department of Transport said that currently in the province there are 33 enterprises and cooperatives transporting passengers on fixed routes and contracts. Recently, the department has issued many documents and directives to strengthen inspection and control of the transport of goods on passenger vehicles, preventing the transport of flammable, explosive and toxic substances, but the department only handles them according to its authority.

Specifically, it is handled according to Decree 46/2016/ND-CP, which stipulates a fine of 3,000,000 - 5,000,000 VND for the act of transporting dangerous, toxic, flammable goods or animals, other goods that affect the health of passengers on passenger vehicles. Depending on the severity of the violation, the vehicle badge may be revoked, the driver's license confiscated, the business license of the transport enterprise revoked... However, the Department of Transport does not have the authority to open the package to check the goods if no violations are detected.

Similarly, with the Market Management Department, only when vehicles carrying goods in violation are discovered, will the department have the authority to coordinate with the police force to conduct inspections and handle the case. The police force also finds it difficult to inspect and control all passenger vehicles traveling in the entire province, with many different stops and stops to pick up passengers and transport goods.

The "gaps" in the management of goods consigned on passenger buses have been and are an alarming reality. It is difficult to solve this problem in a short time, however, to gradually limit violations, there should be sanctions that require bus companies to check the goods with customers, sign confirmation, clearly state their names, addresses, ID numbers, etc. In addition, traffic inspectors and functional forces need to strengthen inspection, control, and inter-sectoral coordination; promote propaganda, raise people's awareness, and provide reputable shipping and postal addresses.

Phuong Chi