Hanoi is planning to stop the use of cyclos in order to improve the local traffic situation, said Secretary of Hanoi Party Committee Pham Quang Nghi.

Hanoi licensed four enterprises to operate tourist cyclos in 2009

At a recent meeting with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Nghi said the city will no longer use any means of transportation which does not fit in with Hanoi's traffic plans, adding that the city will buy cyclos back from their owners and also help to arrange jobs for them.

The removal of tourist cyclos had been proposed previously by many municipal agencies who said that cyclos also often ran in a long row on streets and cross T-junctions and intersections, leading to traffic jams. Meanwhile, it's not easy to deal with violations because, after being caught, many drivers run away and traffic police are only able to arrest some of them. People who are detained insisted that they go in a row of only five cyclos, and are unaware of how many others follow them.

Hanoi licensed four enterprises to operate tourist cyclos in 2009.  However, in many cases, cyclos adversely affect the operation of other vehicles, causing traffic congestion.

Nonetheless, the removal has faced controversy and many local people said that cylos are seen as a cultural feature of Hanoi's Old Quarter. It's poor management that resulted in the boom of this means of transportation, as well as the violations committed by them.