Jammed vehicles span 10 km on HCMC expressway

From 8 a.m., long rows of cars can be seen waiting to pass through the An Phu intersection and enter the HCMC-Long Thanh-Dau Giay expressway. An hour prior, a malfunctioned towing vehicle on Long Thanh Bridge caused a traffic jam that spanned 10 km.

To prevent the congestion from getting worse, traffic police officers barricaded the entrance into the expressway near the An Phu intersection, stopping traffic flow.

After waiting for several hours, many drivers and passengers got out of their vehicles to rest under the shades of trees.

Huong, 47, said she began traveling from HCMC to Vung Tau at 9 a.m., but she was still stuck in traffic at 11 a.m. She could neither push forward nor go back, so she had to wait for over two hours.

"Sitting in the car is stuffy and I get impatient, but I don't know what to do," she said.

Among the jammed vehicles, a driver has to hold a child outside to let him relieve himself.

At the entrance of the HCMC-Long Thanh-Dau Giay expressway, several traffic police officers blocked the way and erected signs to turn away vehicles, directing them towards the Hanoi Avenue instead.

A traffic police representative said the malfunctioned vehicle incident happened during high amount of traffic, as it was the beginning of the summer vacation and people were traveling, resulting in the congestion. The unit has cooperated with other traffic police units to re-route vehicles and manage entrances into the expressway to relieve congestion.

Vehicles travel towards the Hanoi Avenue at the same time with vehicles traveling from Dong Nai to HCMC through the An Phu Roundabout, causing the vehicle flow from the opposite direction to be congested as well.

At the same time, on Mai Chi Tho Street, located about 500 m away from the An Phu Roundabout, a collision between a car and a towing vehicle exarcebated the congestion further.

Nguyen Huu Loc, 30, said he used his phone to pass the time as he waited on his truck. Every day, it takes him only about 30 minutes to travel from Phu Huu Ward to Cat Lai Port, but he only managed to travel 5 km before getting stuck for two hours this morning, he added.

"The congestion happens at noon, right when the weather is hot and I'm hungry. It's very tiring," he said.

A man looks out of the window to see the neverending row of vehicles.

At around noon, traffic police officers reopened the expressway entrance from the An Phu Roundabout, helping vehicles traveling from HCMC to Dong Nai to escape the chaos.