Gov’t asks Hanoi to build parking spaces, parks

A parking lot near Hoan Kiem Lake in Hanoi.

In particular, the city should focus on constructing more irrigation lakes to increase water regulation capacity and reduce flooding in the city.

Dung also asked the municipal People’s Committee to review comprehensively its technical infrastructure plans, making sure transport plans are coordinated and consistent with the city’s approved master plan.

In addition, Hanoi needs to pay attention to the planning of underground spaces and the construction of traffic points connecting the inner city with suburban areas and satellite towns.

The city should boost investment toward building traffic junctions linking bus stations, parking lots with specific investment plans and building mechanisms to attract investors.

The city’s People’s Committee is required to work with the Ministry of Transport to manage and operate the national railway system.

The city needs to speed up the construction of two urban railway lines and study to develop inland waterways in order to reduce the pressure on roads and railways.

Dung said that the city’s People’s Committee should review and make adjustments to water supply planning, which focuses on developing surface water plants to gradually replace the underground water sources.

The city needs to chalk out plans to upgrade and expand its water plants to provide clean water at reasonable prices throughout the city.

In the process of reviewing and supplementing the water drainage plan, the city must study the sustainable wastewater drainage and concentrate projects on flood control, he added.

Hanoi and HCM City face a severe shortage of parking places. Cars and motorbikes continue to park illegally in streets and on pavement.

Figures from the city’s police showed that the capital city has a total of 939 parking areas, 687 on pavement and 245 on the street. Of those, 244 parking places are illegal.

The city also reportedly lacks of public parks and playgrounds. The rapid rate of urbanization and loose management by local authorities are to blame.

There are about 200 public parks and playgrounds in the city. Of those, 29 are in the inner city.

The city’s Department of Planning and Architecture planned to build more than 100 public parks with total area of 59 hectares around the city last year.