Hue gives trash bins a pedal push to keep streets clean

With the three-wheeled pedicab the most popular means of sightseeing in town, authorities are hoping that the decorated trash bins will be used by residents, keeping streets in the former imperial capital free of litter.

Tourists who use the cyclos can throw leftovers and other stuff in the trash bins, which will then be dumped by the cyclo drivers every day. Funding for the initiative came from the Hue Labor Confederation.

Nguyen Tan Xuyen, chairman of Hue Tourism Cyclo Union, said hanging trash bins on cyclos would help prevent littering on the streets and boost Hue's image as a green and clean town, whose main attractions are the former citadel and royal tombs from the Nguyen Dynasty (1802-1945).

So far, many tourists, foreigners and Vietnamese, have expressed interest and given positive feedback for the move.

Thua Thien-Hue Province, home of Hue, last month required all government offices and agencies not to use disposable bottles, including at conferences, and instead use bottles of more than 20 liters that are easier to recycle.

The province also wants supermarkets, malls and restaurants to replace disposable plastic with eco-friendly materials by 2020.

Hue is a major tourist destination in Vietnam. Official data says it received 1.73 million tourists in the first four months of 2019, up 9.2 percent against the same period last year, including 847,700 foreigners, up 11 percent.