17 new bus routes proposed at Tan Son Nhat airport

The company, which currently operates a route that links the airport with Vung Tau beach town, has submitted its proposal to the municipal Department of Transport.

The proposed routes will link the airport in Tan Binh District with the new Mien Dong Bus Station, from where passengers can leave HCMC for localities in the southeastern and central regions; the Mien Tay Bus Station that links with the Mekong Delta; the Phu My Hung urban area in District 7; the Thao Dien urban area in Thu Duc City; the Vinhomes Central Park urban area in Binh Thanh District and other destinations.

The bus used on the 17 routes will be modified from the 16-seat van and 45-seat bus to have 10-30 seats. With fewer seats, passengers would have more space for their luggage.

There are currently three public bus routes to the airport: bus No. 152 linking the airport with the Trung Son residential area in Binh Chanh District; bus No. 109 that connects the airport with the city’s downtown area; and bus 72-1 that links to Vung Tau.

Public bus services at Tan Son Nhat are not used much as customers find them inconvenient and operators complain of intimidation by other transport providers.

The buses use the same pick-up and drop-off lanes as personal cars and, most of the time, the bus stop is occupied by the latter.

In addition, a bus only stops at the airport for three minutes, causing passengers to miss it easily and have to wait around 10-15 minutes for another.

Passengers have also complained that existing bus routes do not connect them to their desired destinations.

About 8 km from the city center, Tan Son Nhat serves more than 100,000 passengers per day and the area in front of the domestic terminal is usually overcrowded.