Trains and buses are unusually empty during Tet (Lunar New Year).

Although the Lunar New Year holiday is over, bus stations, train stations, and North-South bus pick-up points are still busy.National Highway 1AAnd the Vinh bypass still has very few passengers. Compared to previous years, the number of passengers has decreased significantly this year, which was anticipated due to the pandemic. This has caused significant losses for many transportation companies.

From the 1st to the 4th of the month, 404 people canceled their tickets at Vinh train station. Photo: TĐ

InVinh StationIn 2020, the number of passengers traveling after Tet (from the first to the 15th day of the first lunar month) reached 41,479, averaging 2,000 passengers per day. This number is significantly lower than in previous years. However, this number has decreased even further since the beginning of this year. Notably, the number of canceled trains and refunded tickets has increased significantly. Since the first day of Tet, many additional trains scheduled to run between Hanoi and Saigon have been canceled or rescheduled.

Even on the Vinh - Hanoi route, the scheduled NA2 train had many trips with no passengers and had to be canceled. From the 1st to the 4th of the month, an average of 3 trains were canceled each day. During the same period, at Vinh Station alone, 404 tickets were returned, totaling 285 million VND.

Due to the lack of passengers, the railway industry has had to cancel many North-South reunification trains and short-distance scheduled trains. Photo: TĐ

According to Mr. Cao Ngoc Tuan, Head of Vinh Railway Transport Station, it's impossible to fully describe the difficulties the transport industry has faced in the early days of the new year. Although the railway industry has reduced ticket prices by 30% during this Tet holiday, the number of passengers remains very low, and a large number of tickets are still unsold. Furthermore, many customers have canceled their tickets, further reducing already low sales revenue.

Currently, the railway industry applies two methods for exchanging or refunding tickets for customers. Firstly, if customers wish to return their tickets and receive a full refund (after deducting applicable fees), they must wait 90 days. Secondly, the railway industry also has a policy of reserving train tickets for passengers who need to travel in 2021; if they do not travel in 2021, they will receive a full refund by January 1, 2022.

On the 4th, there were very few passengers boarding buses at the North Vinh bus station. Photo: TĐ

Regarding passenger transport by car, the number of passengers has been very low in recent days, with many routes even seeing fewer passengers than usual.North Vinh bus stationCurrently, there are 40 businesses registered to operate here. On the first day of Tet, no buses ran, and from the second to the fourth day, only about 60-70 buses departed. Compared to previous years, the number of buses departing in the days after Tet has decreased by more than one-third. Notably, many businesses that in previous years had to deploy extra buses during Tet not only didn't have to do so but also had to cut back and combine trips.

At bus stops along the North-South route, the number of people waiting for buses has decreased significantly this year compared to previous years. Photo: TĐ

A driver on the Vinh-Da Nang route said: "Since the pandemic resurfaced, the number of passengers has decreased significantly. Each trip from Vinh to Da Nang requires at least 30 passengers for the company to break even; if there are fewer than 30 passengers, we lose money. During this Tet holiday, no bus has reached the 30-passenger mark."

In fact, on many occasions, bus companies had to cancel the Ha Tinh, Quang Binh – Da Nang route and instead have buses run from Vinh to pick up passengers in order to reduce costs.

Bus company staff complete departure procedures at Bac Vinh bus station. Photo: TĐ

Currently, at Vinh North bus station, besides routes from Hai Duong and Quang Ninh that have been suspended according to regulations, many routes from Vinh to northern provinces also have very few passengers. This Tet holiday, only 11 transport companies have requested permission to adjust ticket prices, including routes from Vinh to Hue, Da Nang, Hanoi, Thai Nguyen, Phu Tho, Son La, etc. Ticket prices have been adjusted upwards by about 50,000 to 300,000 VND, depending on the route and type of vehicle. The highest increase is still on routes to Ho Chi Minh City and those using luxury limousine buses.

On the fourth day of Tet (Lunar New Year), the waiting area at Bac Vinh bus station was deserted, with only three passengers waiting to board a bus. Photo: TĐ

Mr. Vu Hoang Huynh, Head of Bac Vinh Bus Station, said: "The unpredictable developments of the epidemic at the end of the year have truly disrupted the passenger transport plans of businesses. Currently, businesses are also monitoring the epidemic situation. If the disease spreads and universities in the North give students more time off, the number of passengers from now until the 15th day of the first lunar month will certainly continue to decrease."