First barrier erected to protect pedestrians

The pedestrian barrier is 500-meters long and 1.3 meter high, and runs from Vo Van Kiet street to Huynh Man Dat primary school.

Photo: Duy Tran

A local resident of District 5 told VnExpress the barrier should have been installed long ago. In the past, she said, she had to weave through street vendors who often set up shop on the sidewalk.

“I used to be glowered at by street vendors when walking on the sidewalk, but everything has changed.”

Photo: Duy Tran

Nguyen Thi Bach Yen, chairman of the Ward 1 People’s Committee, said: “Encroachment on the sidewalk has decreased dramatically. At first, we faced strong opposition from vendors as their lives are based mainly on street trading.”

“We are also proposing a plan to install security cameras to monitor this area,” Yen added.

The authority is installing new panels, banning sidewalk encroachment, photo: Duy Tran