Following Singapore example, Ho Chi Minh City bike lane should be just the beginning

For a major city constantly searching for solutions to reduce congestion and air pollution, it is truly an amazing thing to do. It shows Ho Chi Minh City is listening and beginning to take action to serve residents who favor green mobility and to move toward lower emissions.

I presume the city will not stop with a single route.

Those bright red painted lanes could be connected, extended and expanded in a systematic way. They could form an integrated network from the main Mai Chi Tho axis, branches could extend into residential neighborhoods, cut through parks, follow riverbanks, pass schools and shopping centers, and connect seamlessly to bus hubs and metro stations.

A person rides a bicycle on Ho Chi Minh City's first dedicated bike lane, Dec. 28, 2025. Photo by VnExpress/Quynh Tran

Every day, I cycle from the Buona Vista area along the Singapore River to work, a safe and pleasant 15-kilometer journey. That experience is made possible by Singapore's Park Connector Network (PCN). This is not merely a "bike lane" in the conventional sense, but a fully realized green route, one that was planned and invested in as essential urban infrastructure.

By designing these routes as "green corridors" rather than isolated "lanes," Singapore avoids building disconnected segments of paths.

The PCN is a standardized, multifunctional green corridor.

According to Land Transport Authority guidelines, a standard PCN is four meters wide and clearly divided into a 2.5-meter cycling path and a 1.5-meter walking and jogging path. This separation is key to providing a sense of safety, as cyclists and pedestrians do not need to constantly watch out for one another.

In comparison, Ho Chi Minh City's two-meter-wide bike lane only meets the minimum width required for a two-way urban bike lane under Singapore's standards. To create spaces that truly serve both recreation and inter-district travel, Singapore uses widths of 2.5 meters for inter-area routes and four meters for the PCN network.

This raises an important question: Could we begin with a few pilot green corridors along canal banks, with sufficient width and clear separation similar to this model?

Safety does not come from general reminders, but from standards embedded directly in the design.

These include a maximum gradient of 1:25 to ensure comfortable cycling over long distances, with a five-meter flat rest section provided every 100 meters on uphill overpasses. The minimum vertical clearance under shelters and bridges for cyclists is 2.4 meters, calculated based on human height, wheel diameter, and safety margins to prevent collisions.

Lighting systems must provide an average illuminance of at least five lux on standard cycling routes and 10 lux at intersections, with strict requirements on uniformity to eliminate dangerous dark spots.

The true strength of the PCN lies in its continuity and network connectivity. What Singapore builds is not just paths, but an integrated system.

PCN routes connect seamlessly with the city's cycling network, MRT stations and bus stops, and run through parks, beaches and public housing areas.

When encountering major obstacles such as expressways or wide canals, the city invests in dedicated bicycle bridges with a minimum clear span of 4.8 meters, gentle slopes and protective railings.

An illustration of an intersection with separated space for pedestrians and bicycle riders in Singapore. Photo courtesy of LTA

Beyond that, Singapore places strong emphasis on end-to-end support infrastructure. Along PCN routes and within urban areas, rest benches are installed every 70–100 meters under shelters, accompanied by wheelchair parking spaces measuring 0.9 by 1.2 meters for older adults and people with disabilities.

Wayfinding signage is systematically organized, with distance markers every 100 meters and maps installed at key junctions, ensuring users always know their location and the remaining distance.

Most notable are end-of-trip facilities. Singapore encourages and grants exemptions from gross floor area calculations for office and commercial buildings if developers provide changing rooms, showers and personal lockers for employees who cycle to work.

The standard is one shower for every 10 bicycle parking spaces.

This becomes a form of "conditional incentive" for developers: A win-win arrangement in which the community gains cyclist-friendly infrastructure while developers are allowed additional commercial floor space.

Another particularly thoughtful concept is the pedestrian priority zone, typically located behind bus stops.

In these areas, the pavement is painted bright red, prompting cyclists to slow down and watch out for pedestrians. It is a smart solution that uses visual cues and physical perception to shape behavior rather than rely solely on signage.

An illustration of a pedestrian priority zone at a bus station that intersects with a bike lane in Singapore. Photo courtesy of LTA

To further protect pedestrians, since July 2025 Singapore has strengthened enforcement requiring cyclists to stay within designated lanes. Riding on pedestrian sidewalks now carries heavy penalties.

Dedicated cycling infrastructure not only improves safety and convenience but also creates strong growth opportunities for app-based bicycle-sharing services.

When cyclists must share space with motorbikes and cars, people are discouraged from cycling, while service providers find it difficult to scale up.

With wide, clearly separated lanes, cycling becomes safer and more comfortable, encouraging people to use bicycles for both daily commuting and recreation. This in turn enables bike-sharing services to grow in a coordinated and sustainable way.

The bike lane along Mai Chi Tho Boulevard is a commendable first step, but there is still a clear gap between a single isolated lane and a truly functional cycling infrastructure system.

More importantly, the route still lacks key connections to bus terminals, parks, metro stations, and residential areas, causing it to function as an isolated traffic artery rather than part of a complete network.

So should Ho Chi Minh City nurture its own PCN dream? I believe it should. And it has a unique geographic advantage too, like flat terrain interwoven with a dense network of canals, ideal for cycling.

Instead of allowing canal banks to remain encroached upon and polluted, why not revive them as "urban green corridors"? Imagine cool, shaded cycling and walking routes running along the Tau Hu Canal or the Nhieu Loc–Thi Nghe Canal, linking neighborhoods together, just as Singapore has done with the Singapore, Kallang and Pandan rivers.

The answer to a truly livable city does not lie in isolated painted lines, but in a comprehensive vision of a connected, green, safe, and inclusive network, one that serves everyone from children and seniors to daily commuters.

Singapore, a city with a hot, humid tropical climate and waterways similar to Ho Chi Minh City, has already proven that this vision is achievable.

With its waterways, governmental vision and inherent dynamism, Ho Chi Minh City can absolutely write its own success story, starting by transforming canal banks into green corridors and turning the dream of safe, everyday cycling into a reality for millions.