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grant gerstners
Joined: 30 Jan 2010
Posts: 4
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 Posted: Fri Dec 31, 2010 12:05 am Post subject: public transportation |
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| How good is the public transportation in Vietnam? |
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snollygoster
Joined: 04 Jun 2009
Posts: 478
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| Posted: Fri Dec 31, 2010 2:14 am Post subject: Transport |
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In the cities buses are old but OK-there is no suburban rail. Motorbike taxi is the usual way and cheap and efficient considering the challenges of the crazy traffic.
Intercity- there are several buses to and from most towns and cities every day, but they can be good to terrible. Good are quite good, and terrible are really terrible.
Train is an option but it is slow and not what westerners would call clean-but it is usually on time. Train travel is ok between major coastal or near coastal cities, and there is a reasonable network in the north, but the south has almost no rail except to go north.
Taxis are ok, but variable and they are well known, particularly in Hanoi for scams.
All in all, best option is to have your own small motorbike bike and be brave and drive aggressively but with an eye out on the defensive side. |
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grant gerstners
Joined: 30 Jan 2010
Posts: 4
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| Posted: Fri Dec 31, 2010 6:26 am Post subject: |
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Thanks for the reply. That gives me a pretty good picture of things, but it's hard to imagine myself getting around with a scooter in scary traffic. I guess there's a first time for everything.
snollygoster, I'm interested in seeing the blog you mentioned in another thread, but I do not have enough messages in this forum to PM you a request for it. I guess it only takes 5 messages to get the PM privilege, but if you see this please PM me a link to the blog.
Thanks. |
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Rabbit81
Joined: 27 Jul 2006
Posts: 32
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| Posted: Fri Dec 31, 2010 10:54 am Post subject: Re: public transportation |
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| grant gerstners wrote: |
| How good is the public transportation in Vietnam? |
The only public transpo are the buses. They can be useful if you live near the route you want to go to work, or get around town.
Xe Oms (motorbike taxis) are more expensive, quicker, and more convenient (in my opinion).
Personally, I drive my own motorbike.
To each their own. |
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1st Sgt Welsh
Joined: 13 Dec 2010
Posts: 946
Location: Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei
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| Posted: Fri Dec 31, 2010 12:43 pm Post subject: |
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| grant gerstners wrote: |
| That gives me a pretty good picture of things, but it's hard to imagine myself getting around with a scooter in scary traffic. I guess there's a first time for everything. |
Do try your luck on a scooter. I actually put off getting one for the first few months I was in Hanoi due to concerns about the traffic. Big mistake! Life improved so much by having my own means of private transport. Besides, driving everywhere on a xe om is not necessarily safer than driving yourself as many xe om drivers are just as foolish on the roads as regular Vietnamese. If you find one you like it might be an idea to get their cell number and make them your regular driver. Taxis are another option but they are a bit more expensive and, as snollygoster said, there are scams to be wary of.
The first couple of times driving in traffic were a bit tense, but within two weeks or so I got the hang of it. Good advice for driving anywhere is to assume that everyone else on the road is an idiot and, in Vietnam, this adage is not just a piece of folksy wisdom, but often a daily reality  Anyway, as long as the traffic is moving, I actually now quite enjoy zipping around the city on my bike. Grant I am not sure where you are going but if it's Hanoi and you want to rent a scooter there is only one guy to see. That's Andrew at VIP Bikes (ph no: 0914 931 390, e-mail: [email protected]). Top bloke and if you ask him I am sure he will take you for a riding lesson if you are not used to handling a scooter. Anyway good luck with whatever you decide. |
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The Mad Hatter
Joined: 16 May 2010
Posts: 165
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| Posted: Sat Jan 01, 2011 9:47 pm Post subject: |
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| Traffic is extremely dangerous , even though many have no other means of getting around. Walking is not an option because there are obstacles on all sidewalks and in many areas one motorbikes do drive on sidewalks so you have to jump out of the way. Probably the best thing to do is live near enough to reduce your driving distance as much as possible. In the rainy season flooding can be particularly discouraging. Ive been in some traffic jams lasting nearly an hour which could have been avoided had I lived nearer to my workplace. |
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deadlift
Joined: 08 Jun 2010
Posts: 267
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| Posted: Sun Jan 02, 2011 6:45 am Post subject: |
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I feel far safer driving myself on a motorbike than I do riding on the back of a xe om. Taxis are too expensive to use regularly, walking is difficult due to the state of the foot paths and the traffic, and buses are not an option.
My advice is to find a good xe om you can use regularly, until you've developed a road sense and feel more confident about joining traffic yourself. |
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grant gerstners
Joined: 30 Jan 2010
Posts: 4
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snollygoster
Joined: 04 Jun 2009
Posts: 478
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| Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2011 2:36 am Post subject: Traffic |
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| Damn good drivers aren't they? |
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