A recent quarrel between an off-duty policeman and a taxi driver who had refused to give way to each other while driving in opposite directions on a crowded sidewalk clogged Nguyen Bieu Street in Ho Chi Minh City’s District 5, a major thoroughfare to District 8 already obstructed by barriers surrounding a sewage construction project, for hours.

The scene, two motorists butting heads when neither will let the other pass on a sidewalk, is a common one as more and more drivers continue using the pavement to get around ever-worsening traffic jams.

Attitude problems

The problem is not only the traffic, it’s the way people deal with it.

Lieutenant Nguyen Thai Binh, chief of the District 5 Police’s traffic jam taskforce, said he was often insulted and even attacked by motorists he tried to reprimand for various violations.

“I understand that everyone wants to get to their destinations quickly, but they need to obey traffic laws,” he said, adding that the flagrant disrespect he received from most citizens hurt pretty bad.

Though motorbike drivers had been more vocal to Binh, bus drivers and their assistants were not immune from the disease of road rage.

Thanh Nien recently witnessed one bus driver’s assistant screaming “Get on! Quick!” to some 10 passengers that had yet to board as the bus passed a Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Street stop in District 1 without completely stopping.

The last passengers to run and jump on almost fell off as the vehicle accelerated, honking its horn incessantly.

The driver’s assistant then leaned through a window to make obscene and vulgar remarks at motorists failing to give way on the crowded street.

Passengers also reported another incident in which a driver’s assistant physically pushed a woman out of the vehicle because she had gotten on the wrong bus. As the bus sped off, the woman fell down.

Thu Thuy, an office worker in District 3, said a bus driver spit on her last month at red light at the Le Van Sy and Tran Quang Dieu crossroads. Realizing what he had done, the driver simply laughed at her, she said.

School daze

Some of the worst traffic problems occur when the school day finishes and throngs of youngsters spill out into the streets, which their parents have already clogged with waiting motorbikes.

Such gridlock is common every morning on Xo Viet Nghe Tinh Street in front of the Hong Ha Primary School in Binh Thanh District.

Thanh Nien witnessed an interesting scene of forced cooperation in one such traffic jam in front of Hong Ha.

A woman with two children on her bike couldn’t reach the sidewalk, let alone the school gate, due to the large number of bikes blocking the way. But as she waited for a way in, a bus was held up behind her. So the bus driver’s assistant jumped down and carried the kids to the school gate to clear the way.

The high road

Nguyen Van N., a truck driver in District 3, said he escapes from traffic congestion by following ambulances or cars with blue license plates, which means that they belong to state-run offices.

On October 6, Thanh Nien witnessed a car with a blue plate drive on the wrong side of the road on District 1’s Nguyen Thi Minh Khai Street in order to turn on Truong Dinh Street, forcing motorbikes in the correct lane to drive on the sidewalk.

Just a couple of minutes later, another blue-plate car made the same illegal move.

‘Police work’

A group of traffic cops have been assigned to work at the intersection of Ba Thang Hai and Nguyen Tri Phuong streets, as the area is often congested with traffic jams and gridlock that fills the sidewalks with cars.

However, Thanh Nien recently found two policemen there were chatting with a woman at a nearby cake stall while many vehicles ran red lights and disregarded crosswalks.

And worse, police themselves frequently violate traffic laws.

On October 13, four traffic police parked their two motorbikes illegally on District 1’s Luong Huu Khanh Street in front of an eatery where they had breakfast.

Dozens of police cars often park illegally in the bicycle lane on District 1’s Tran Hung Dao Street in front of a HCMC Police Department office.

Reported by Thanh Nien staff