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Trying to catch a public bus in Hanoi may take the breath out of you, literally.

Overcrowded buses

A girl got injured while trying to get on a moving bus

Buses drive to pick up passengers, don’t they? One might expect, standing at a bus stop, that the bus would slow down and stop to let you on. But this is too often not the case.

Many times, would-be passengers are forced to run after the bus just to get in the door. And, far too often, they don’t make it, and are forced to watch the bus go by them along with other vehicles. Bus riders have little choice but to wait patiently for their chance for transportation.

Those who travel by bus are not unaccustomed to being elbowed and pushed from every angle, particularly when trying to get on. The bus routes No. 7 (Noi Bai-Cau Giay), 26 (Mai Dong-My Dinh National Stadium), 30 (Mai Dong-My Dinh Bus Station), 32 (Giap Bat-Nhon), 34 (My Dinh Bus Station-Gia Lam Bus Station), are notorious for this.

Drivers on these lines often skip their stops. Passengers who manage to get onto the buses will usually find themselves in an uncomfortable position. The buses are packed, and space is tight. It is also an ideal situation for thieves.

This situation is for the lucky ones who manage to board in the first place.

The problem is not that the bus stops are not clearly marked, or that riders don’t know where the buses are going. It is simply that the crowded buses, all to often fail to stop.

La, 27, who often travels by bus attributed the phenomenon to a fact that bus drivers just rush by, looking forward to the end of their shift, and to handing over the bus to the next driver.

This reporter, intending one day to take the bus from Giang Vo to Gia Lam, was forced to call a relative for a ride after waiting for nearly an hour. The first bus was too crowded to get on board. The second one did not stop until a few meters past the marked place. By the time it was clear that the bus was stopping, it was too late; it drove off. A third bus came, with plenty of room, but this bus did not even bother to stop.

Running after the bus, something that is necessary far too often, can be demoralising, and even dangerous.

On November 2, 2010, a student got one of her legs caught in a bus’ doors as she was trying to get on while the bus was running. She was seriously injured. She was dragged for some metres and the wheel ran over her leg.

Hanoi plans to start its first fast-bus route in the third quarter of this year, with an aim to ease current transportation issues. The route will consist of 80 buses, with 80 seats each and the line will have bus service every five minutes.