Da Nang has seen a growing number of tourist coaches with foreign registration plates operating in the city, and the majority of them come from Laos.

A tourist coach with a registration plate of Laos in the city

In particular, there have been a large number of such coaches operating in the city’s popular attractions like the Linh Ung Pagoda, the Marble Mountains Tourist Area, the Ba Na Hills Resort, and the Rooster Cathedral, as well as on Vo Nguyen Giap, Ho Nghinh, Ha Bong, Pham Van Dong and Yen Bai streets on which there are many hotels.

Mr Tran Chi Cuong, Deputy Director of the municipal Tourism Department, said most of these coaches were operating in the city without having transportation business licences. They violated the city’s traffic regulations, adversely affecting the traffic safety.

Mr Bui Thanh Thuan, Deputy Director of the city’s Department of Transportation, said that some tourist coaches with registration plates of Laos have been operating on fixed road passenger transport routes between coach stations of Da Nang and Laotian provinces.

In reality, some of the city’s travel agencies have signed contracts with owners of tourist coaches with registration plates of Laos for carrying passengers from foreign countries to Viet Nam, and transporting tourists on the Hue-Da Nang-Quang Nam-Binh Thuan and Nha Trang road route.

Also, some local transport service providers have used such coaches to carry out their transportation activities in Viet Nam.

Deputy Director Thuan added that relevant agencies found it difficult to monitor and manage the operation of such coaches.

“Most of these coaches are operating in the city without having a contract on cross-border transportation of passengers from Laos to Viet Nam and a list of all passengers onboard. Moreover, permit of temporary import for re-export of vehicles is valid within 30 days”, he added.

In an attempt to deal with this problem of high concern, a municipal inter-disciplinary inspection team was established in April 2017 to increase their checks and monitoring of these vehicles.

As a result, last year, fines of over 90 million VND in total were imposed on 10 tourist coaches with registration plates of Laos.

Most of the violations related to not having international transport permits, contracts on cross-border transportation of passengers, and certificates of tourism professional qualifications. The violators carried tourists in contravention of the national agreement on road transport, and were in the country for more than 30 days.

Furthermore, the municipal Tourism Department has asked local travel agencies not to sign contracts with owners of tourist coaches with foreign registration plates for carrying out passenger transportation activities in Viet Nam.

Also, the inter-disciplinary inspection team suggested that the city authorities should ask the Border Guard and Customs Department not to extend transportation permits for vehicles which violate the national traffic rules many times.