The central city will launch five new bus routes connecting inner sites in the city with subsidised fares for locals, starting this December.

The city’s transport department said the new bus routes will operate with new 40-seat vehicles, replacing old 29-seater buses in poor condition.

The bus routes will receive financial support to offer cheap tickets for commuters and to encourage local residents to use public transport, rather than personal cars or motorbikes.

Tickets will cost VND5,000 (US$0.2) per trip, or VND90,000 ($4) for a monthly package; special prices will be offered for the disabled and the underprivileged.

Local residents will also get one month of free tickets when the new routes launch in December.

The city also plans to debut three of their first Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) routes and a BRT route connecting the Da Nang International Airport and favourite destinations in Hoi An City in neighbouring Quang Nam Province starting in 2018.

The city also plans to develop five new BRT routes and 14 regular bus routes by 2020.

Da Nang currently operates five bus routes from Da Nang to Quang Nam Province cities and districts, including Hoi An, Duy Xuyen, Que Son, Dai Loc and Tam Ky.

Da Nang is Viet Nam’s fourth largest city and is highly regarded by other cities for its planning, governance and infrastructure.

In 2013, the World Bank agreed to fund an $272.1 million sustainable development project, of which $202.4 million have been funnelled into helping improve the city’s BRT network, building new roads, and revamping the drainage system.

With a population of 900,000, Da Nang has outgrown its current public transit system, which only has 48 buses travelling along five routes.

Locals make 2.1 million journeys each day, of which 80 per cent are via motorbike, according to the city’s transport department. — VNS