By 2015, HCM City will buy 1,680 new buses to replace outdated buses, at the total cost of nearly VND2 trillion or $100 million, according to the city’s plan on bus investment in 2012-2015.

Specifically, the city will buy 571 buses of 80 seats, 409 buses of 55 seats and 700 buses of 40 seats.

The funding for this plan will come from private transport companies and the city budget. Private firms will be assisted in the following form: they have to pay only 30 percent of value of buses in cash. The remaining 70 percent will be banking loans; with part of interest money is provided by the city budget.

HCM City’s Vice Chair Nguyen Huu Tien approved the plan. However, he asked the local Department of Transport to finalize the plan to submit to the city government for approval this June.

In an effort to make buses a more popular means of transport in HCM City, new high-quality buses have been put into operation. The buses have cameras and automatic ticket selling machines, both of which will improve service quality.

Source: VNN