Rail accidents spur Government to action

Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh has ordered urgent measures to increase safety at railway crossings.
Rail accidents spur Government to action ảnh 1Roads built illegally to cross railway tracks in ​Hanoi. (Photo: VNA)  

Hanoi (VNA) - Deputy Prime MinisterTruong Hoa Binh has ordered urgent measures to increase safety at railwaycrossings.

His order came in the wake of a sharp spike inthe number and scale of railway accidents during the Tet (Lunar New Year) holiday.

Deputy PM Binh, who also heads the NationalTraffic Safety Committee, sent a message to the Ministry of Transport, Ministryof Public Security, chairpersons of People’s Committees and heads of trafficsafety departments in provinces and cities that the railway runs through.

The message followed two severe railwayaccidents on February 4.

At 3.20pm on February 4, train TN1 running inthe North-South direction through Vu Ban district, Nam Dinh province crashedinto a 16-seat car at a crossing, killing the car’s driver on the spot andinjuring five, two of them seriously and the rest three were released fromhospitals on February 5.  

The same afternoon, three people were injured,one badly, when train LP5 running on the Hanoi-Hai Phong route hit a four-seatcar which was crossing the railroad in Hung Yen province’s Van Lam district.

Eight traffic accidents involving the railwaystook place during the seven-day Tet holiday, claiming six lives and injuring 11.This marked an increase of 60 percent in the number of accidents, 100 percentin fatalities and 175 percent of injuries over the previous Tết holiday.

According to the National Traffic SafetyCommittee, the main cause of railway accidents is that drivers of vehiclesdisobey the law at crossings.

It said provincial and municipal authorities, aswell as the Vietnam Railway Authority haven’t considered the problem seriousenough to issue instructions, carry out inspections and push for solutions.They have also been lax in determining and dealing strictly with thoseresponsible for railway crossing accidents, the committee said.

Deputy PM Binh has asked the Ministry of Transport (MoT) to instruct the VietnamRailway Authority to closely work with relevant authorities of the Ministry ofPublic Security, as well as Nam Dinh and Hung Yen provinces to investigate theaccidents on February 4 and affix responsibilities of organisations andindividuals involved.

He said the MoT should work with provincial andmunicipal authorities to propose solutions for ensuring safety at levelcrossings on the whole route, including the construction of front roads,setting up barriers, and clarify the responsibilities of bodies guardingcrossings throughout the route.

The ministry should continue updating detailedtimetables of trains running through crossings, particularly those in and nearresidential areas so that local traffic safety departments can assign guards,strengthen inspections and compliance with law at level-crossings, Binh said.

He asked the Ministry of Public Security toco-ordinate with police in localities to reinforce patrols and strictly dealwith violations, especially the illegal lifting of barriers.

The heads of provincial and municipaladministrations as well as the heads of local traffic safety departments mustdevelop concrete plans to eliminate illegally-established railway crossings,and appoint guards at crossings that do not have barriers, he said.-VNA
VNA

See more

At a job fair in HCM City (Photo: VNA)

Job market to surge in 2025, technology and sustainability leading the way

TopCV predicts that roles such as software developers, data analysts and cybersecurity engineers will dominate the labour market in the technology sector, while manufacturing and logistics industries are expected to prioritise recruitment of automation engineers, supply chain managers and quality control specialists to optimise processes and integrate new technologies.

Thu Duc city covers an area of about 21,156ha. (Photo nongnghiep.vn)

HCM city’s urban area master plan approved

Thu Duc city will be an area leading the HCM City’s economy and other metropolitan areas through knowledge-based economic activities such as training, research, high-tech production and development cooperation.

Workers give up their Tet holiday to work at Long Thanh International Airport's construction site. (Photo: VNA)

Labour gaps expected after Tet, Ministry warns

The Ministry urged labour agencies to strengthen monitoring of supply-demand trends and expand online job-matching platforms across provinces to fill the forecast labour gaps in the first quarter.

Tet gifts are handed to poor, near-poor families in Nghe An province (Photo: VNA)

Tet 2025: Communities come together to spread joy, support

According to local Departments of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, over 13.5 million people nationwide benefited from this outpouring of support. The total budget for this endeavour exceeded 7.943 trillion VND, up 181 billion VND from the previous year.

Vietnamese Ambassador to Thailand Pham Viet Hung speaks at the event (Photo: VNA)

CPV’s 95th anniversary celebrated in Thailand

Vietnamese Ambassador to Thailand Pham Viet Hung described the CPV founding as a turning point in Vietnam’s revolutionary path - a moment that marked the growth of the Vietnamese working class and their readiness to lead the nation toward independence and progress.

National flags hung along a road in Ea Tieu commune, Cu Kuin district, Dak Lak province (Photo: VNA)

Flag road model inspires national pride

In recent years, the National Flag Road model has been widely developed across many localities in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak, serving as a testament to the spirit of great national unity and making a practical contribution to the movements of building new-style rural areas and civilised urban areas.