Dealing with encroachment on traffic safety corridors: A case of catching the culprit and letting them go!

Widespread encroachment and re-encroachment.

On many streets in Vinh City, the encroachment on sidewalks for selling goods, storing construction materials, etc., remains widespread. Some examples include streets such as Ly Thuong Kiet, Hong Bang, Le Viet Thuat, and Nguyen Sy Sach...

Furthermore, encroachment for market activities is widespread. For example, in the Quan Banh market area, although authorities have posted signs prohibiting parking on the road and painted lines allowing car parking on the sidewalk, order was only maintained initially. Currently, despite the painted lines and prohibition signs remaining, no one is complying.

Ms. QTH, a regular customer at Quan Banh market, said: "Although there are diagonal lines painted indicating parking for cars on the sidewalk, in reality, the households along the street are all doing business, not to mention allowing street vendors to use the space to collect fees, so no one allows cars to park there. Many households even put up obstacles to block the parking..."

Therefore, vendors freely display their goods on the sidewalks and even in the middle of the road, and of course, buyers stop wherever is convenient – ​​this happens daily. Meanwhile, the traffic volume on National Highway 1A through this area is very high, making the road even narrower, causing difficulties for vehicles and always posing a risk of traffic accidents.

In Nghi Loc district, this situation is not unique to Quan Hanh town, but also occurs in many communes.encroaching on sidewalksTo erect advertising signs and display business goods, such as along the Vinh - Cua Hoi road through Nghi Phong commune, advertising signs are erected close together, perpendicular to the road surface, not only making the road look cluttered but also restricting visibility and affecting traffic safety.

Similarly, in Con Cuong town, the encroachment on traffic safety corridors has not been completely resolved. In particular, near the market area, the situation of shops and signs encroaching on sidewalks is rampant, and customers stop and park their vehicles right in the middle of the road…

Previously, on August 29th, the Provincial People's Committee issued Plan No. 675/KH-UBND on launching a high-intensity campaign to clear violations and prevent re-encroachment on road and railway safety corridors in the province in 2024. Accordingly, the campaign will begin on August 30th, 2024, with simultaneous operations across all 21 districts, cities, and towns, and will continue until January 30th, 2025.

The plan states that agencies, units, and localities should strengthen propaganda efforts and concentrate maximum human resources, vehicles, and equipment at the district and commune levels to clear violations and prevent re-encroachment on traffic safety corridors in the province. The focus will be on urban roads, inner-city areas, towns, and townships passing through densely populated areas, connected to main arterial routes, national highways, and provincial roads.

Absolutely no use of sidewalks, roads, or road shoulders for business or trading is permitted. All tents, stalls, tables, chairs, movable or fixed awnings, etc., on sidewalks, roads, road shoulders, and land designated for road and railway maintenance will be resolutely dismantled.

For outdoor billboards and signs, they must be hung, attached, or mounted to the front or back of the building, parallel to the main road, and must ensure urban aesthetics; mobile advertising signs are not allowed to be installed on sidewalks, road shoulders, or land designated for road and railway maintenance.

Holding leaders accountable

Regarding the causes of encroachment, some localities still have violations stemming from historical issues, such as: In Hung Nguyen district, dozens of kiosks along Provincial Road 542C, which were leased by the People's Committees of Hung Tan, Hung Thong, Hung Xa communes and Hung Nguyen town before 1995, have not yet been definitively resolved.

In Block 4, Con Cuong town, along National Highway 7, which has been expanded multiple times, the State has not yet compensated or reclaimed the traffic safety protection corridor. As a result, the land boundaries of the households are defined in their land deeds as extending from the outer edge of the drainage ditch inwards, causing difficulties in handling violations…

In reality, the majority of re-encroachment stems from the habit of people conducting business and trading along the roadside, and often, after clearance and the absence of law enforcement, the encroachment resumes.

Meanwhile, the penalties are not strong enough to deter violations, and the authorities lack sufficient manpower, equipment, and funding for each operation to clear violations. In addition, the recurrence of encroachment is also due to the lack of decisive action, coordination, and timeliness from local authorities. The sense of responsibility of some officials and civil servants regarding the clearing of violations and the prevention of re-encroachment on traffic safety corridors is not high. The traffic safety committees at the district and commune levels still operate on a part-time basis, leading to a lack of focus and low effectiveness…

In an interview with us, Mr. Phan Huy Chuong – Deputy Permanent Chairman of the Provincial Traffic Safety Committee – stated: Based on the plan to launch a high-intensity campaign to clear violations and prevent re-encroachment on road and railway traffic safety corridors in 2024, on October 3rd, the Provincial People's Committee issued Decision No. 2591/QD-UBND on the establishment of an inter-agency team to inspect the work of clearing violations and preventing re-encroachment on road and railway traffic safety corridors.

The team was divided into two groups, each inspecting five localities including the districts of Que Phong, Quy Hop, Quy Chau, Anh Son, Tuong Duong, Ky Son, Do Luong, Nghi Loc, Cua Lo town and Thai Hoa town.

At the end of the inspection, the inter-agency team will compile and report the inspection results to the Provincial People's Committee; at the same time, they will propose measures to overcome existing shortcomings, limitations, difficulties, and obstacles in the work of clearing violations and preventing re-encroachment on the safety corridors of road and railway traffic at the district and commune levels according to regulations.

The Department of Transport will be the lead agency responsible for compiling the results and reporting them to the Standing Committee of the Provincial People's Council and the Provincial People's Committee; it will also consider and provide feedback on cases of violations requiring action as proposed by the inter-agency team.

For districts not included in the inspection list, the Provincial People's Committee assigns the inter-agency team to implement the detailed outline and appendix, which will be sent to the district-level People's Committees for self-inspection, evaluation, and reporting of results.

According to Mr. Phan Huy Chuong, to effectively implement the Provincial People's Committee's directive in Plan No. 675/KH-UBND, departments, agencies, and local authorities at the district and commune levels need to strengthen supervision and decisively direct the deployment and maintenance of forces to clear and prevent re-encroachment on traffic safety corridors. Along with this, responsibility should be assigned to the chairmen of the People's Committees and the heads of the police at the commune and ward levels for the results of clearing violations and preventing re-encroachment on traffic safety corridors in their assigned areas… Only then can we prevent re-encroachment and avoid the current situation of "catching and releasing" violations in traffic safety corridor enforcement.