In Ho Chi Minh City, a traffic jam means moving slower than a pedestrian for 30 minutes

In Ho Chi Minh City, a traffic jam is officially defined as when vehicles move at less than five kilometers per hour--slower than a walking pace--for more than 30 minutes, with queues stretching at least 200 meters, city officials said on Thursday.

The criteria are set by the city's Department of Construction, which took over transportation oversight following a merger with the former transport department.

These standards are used to determine when congestion is formally recognized in Vietnam's most populous city, home to more than nine million registered residents and over 10 million vehicles.

Nguyen Kien Giang, deputy head of the department's transport infrastructure division, said the city relies on real-time data from a network of traffic cameras, supplemented by manual assessments at key intersections, to monitor road conditions.

Traffic alerts marked as 'heavy traffic, slow movement' on the city's public traffic information portal are also factored in when they identify congestion hot spots.

The city does not currently rank congestion by severity.

However, areas that meet the defined thresholds for speed, duration, and queue length are flagged for review.

Based on this official definition, Ho Chi Minh City did not record any traffic jams in the first half of 2025.

Only one case of traffic buildup was reported: a three-car collision during the morning rush near the Thu Duc Agricultural Market in Thu Duc City.

That incident, which coincided with incoming trucks from the Central Highlands and southeastern provinces, caused a backup along National Highway 1 between the Song Than overpass and Binh Phuoc intersection.

Traffic police cleared the scene quickly.

As of early 2025, authorities had identified 23 high-risk locations for congestion, often tied to road design issues or seasonal spikes in vehicle flow.

By mid-year, five of those sites had improved, and nine showed signs of easing, although several are still under watch.

Giang also noted that under a national regulation issued by the Ministry of Transport in 2024, road accident black spots are now formally designated as 'frequent accident locations.'

So far this year, the city has eliminated two such sites, with only one remaining on Vo Chi Cong Boulevard in Thu Duc.

Bao Anh - Chau Tuan / Tuoi Tre News

(2025/06/27-18:03)