Vietnam to equip 200,000 vehicles with safety cameras

Do Cong Thuy, deputy head of the transport department under the Directorate for Roads of Vietnam, said it has requested transport units to install cameras in positions where drivers and entryways could be observed before July 1.

Cameras should use either 4G or 5G technologies for good image quality, since network service providers would discontinue 2G services in future.

About 200,000 coaches with more than eight seats, container trucks and tractors would need to have cameras installed, Thuy said, adding several transport businesses had already deployed the measure.

A transport decree issued in January last year had stated the aforementioned vehicles must have cameras installed before July 1.

Transport units are required to store camera footage recorded within the latest 24 hours for vehicles travelling up to 500 kilometers, and within the latest 72 hours for those running over 500 kilometers. Footage would be provided to authorities, including police and traffic inspectors, to keep track of driver conduct and prevent issues like overcrowding.

Last year, Vietnam Automobile Transportation Association (VATA) proposed delaying camera installation by two years over financial difficulties caused by Covid-19. However, the proposal was rejected.

Nguyen Van Quyen, chairman of VATA, said the cost for installing cameras and retrieving data was high. Each coach would need three to four cameras, with each priced at around VND3 million ($130). Retrieving data from each device could add up to VND320,000 a month. The indicates each coach would require around VND10 million toward camera installation, and each transport company, up to VND2 billion.