People ride bicycles to celebrate Car Free Day in Brussels, Belgium, September 22, 2019. Photo: THX/VNA For more than two centuries, the bicycle has always been considered a sustainable means of transportation, with obvious convenience. For many people’s lives, bicycles are a simple but effective, practical, “affordable” tool. Today, the use of bicycles is also a solution to improve health and raise environmental awareness. In fact, bicycles are a tool to support the development of transport, education and health sectors. In some underdeveloped areas, bicycles are an essential means of life for people who cannot afford to own a motor vehicle. The bicycle helps people take their children to school, to work, to medical care, etc. In big cities, bicycles can become a bridge between public transport solutions. People can use bicycles to move between transit stations, bus stops or piers. For places where there is no infrastructure to serve the needs of fitness and sports, cycling is a way to help people exercise their health and flexibility. According to a report by the World Health Organization (WHO), regularly cycling can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke, diabetes or cancer. In addition, the use of bicycles clearly shows the trend of “clean transportation”, being environmentally friendly in today’s time. Bicycles can send messages about sustainable consumption and production, making a positive contribution to environmental and climate protection. Cycling can also help people develop creative thinking, have more awareness about society and the surrounding life. UN calls for attention to the role of bicycles On the occasion of World Bicycle Day 3 June 2021, the United Nations General Assembly calls on Member States to support the use of bicycles to promote sustainable development and strengthen social areas such as health, education and training. sex. The UN also emphasized the role of bicycle use in the process of improving health, preventing diseases, and ensuring social justice. Based on the important and practical values ​​​​of cycling for social development, the UN encourages countries to focus on the role of bicycles in domestic development policies and strategies. , regionally and worldwide. The United Nations urges member states to strengthen road safety and develop sustainable transport infrastructure with a focus on pedestrians and cyclists. To achieve the goals of reducing emissions, improving air quality and improving traffic, road infrastructure needs to meet mobility needs and ensure pedestrian and pedestrian safety. bike. The UN encourages Member States to adopt policies and measures that encourage and support the use of bicycles in everyday life. The United Nations General Assembly actively welcomes movements to promote “cycling culture” in Member States and around the world. Bicycles in Vietnam Photo: Manh Linh/Newspapers In her speech at the celebration of World Bicycle Day 2018, Ms. Nguyen Phuong Nga, former Head of the Permanent Mission of Vietnam to the UN emphasized that the bicycle is a close “companion” of the people. Vietnam in the past, present and future. During the two resistance wars against the French colonialists and the American imperialists, our army and people used bicycles to supply food and ammunition to the front lines. The image of bicycles on the road in support of the Dien Bien Phu campaign is a testament to the important role of bicycles in the struggle for independence of the Vietnamese people. The war ended, before the motorcycle became popular, the bicycle was the main means of transport for workers in the process of development, restoration and national construction. Currently, bicycles are still a useful means of transportation with low cost and high popularity throughout the provinces of Vietnam. In addition to the health benefits, cycling can also help young people express their own style and personality. Ho Chi Minh City has started piloting public bicycle rental systems through smart devices in District 1. This vehicle model is a solution to help people move around economically. and convenient between public bus points or in the city. According to Mr. Khuat Viet Hung, Vice Chairman of the National Traffic Safety Committee, public bicycles play an important role in the development of public transport modes such as buses and trams because they can help reduce personal motor vehicles and connect railway stations, bus stations, or transit points in urban areas.

Applying technology to public bicycles The People’s Committee of Ho Chi Minh City has concluded on the proposal to pilot the Mobike public bicycle in District 1. The project will be piloted by Tri Nam Group Joint Stock Company (Tri Nam Company) as an investor. invest 388 vehicles arranged in 43 locations in district 1 and along the project to organize priority lanes for buses on Dien Bien Phu and Vo Thi Sau streets (District 3). According to the HCM City Department of Transport, the city currently has 22 black spots for traffic jams, especially during peak hours. The increase in the number of private vehicles puts pressure on traffic and leads to serious environmental pollution. Contributing to solving this problem, the Department of Transport has proposed piloting the public bicycle model Mobike. According to Duong Dinh Trung – Tri Nam Group, the model is deployed for the main purpose of reducing traffic jams and reducing private vehicles, enhancing public services, and increasing connectivity with buses and metros in the future. It can be said that the public bicycle model is probably very useful in solving the problem of traffic jams and environmental pollution. However, recalling 7 years ago, this model failed because it did not meet the two words “convenience” when deployed in Hanoi. In order to avoid going into the “fallen path” of Hanoi, the HCM City Department of Transport said that it will deploy technology application in this model, in order to create the most convenience for people. “In the long term, it will be necessary to study the design of a dedicated bicycle road for circulation. The second is the application of science and technology to how to combine and integrate the cyclist software with the software of bus and metro riders and the public transport center that we manage to warn. soon the location of congestion or the risk of traffic jams to make it more convenient for users,” said the leader of the Department of Transport. Many concerns With the goal that by 2030, Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City will become two civilized and modern cities, free of traffic congestion. Therefore, although it cannot replace motorbikes, experts say that public bicycles can be considered as a useful platform to promote the development of “green transport”. But how to build a cycling culture and people see bicycles as useful means? Because with the pilot of public bicycles of Ho Chi Minh City, from the perspective of Assoc. Prof. Dr. Pham Van Hung – Southern Institute of Transport Science and Technology: If the project does not use the city budget, it is completely implemented by private enterprises. then it can be piloted on a small scale, if it fails, it will learn from experience to deploy for later stages. However, it is necessary to study the case that the number of bicycles will increase the disorder between vehicle lines, increase the risk of traffic jams, and the risk of traffic accidents in Ho Chi Minh City. Because the current state of vehicles is circulating according to the law of turbulent traffic. Cars and motorbikes are crowded, chaotic, traffic jams are constant. “Currently, Ho Chi Minh City does not have a separate lane for bicycles, which means that a large number of these vehicles will blend into the overloaded and disordered motorbike lanes, increasing complexity, causing congestion, traffic jams, and accidents. traffic accident” – Mr. Hung wondered. From another perspective, Dr. Vu Anh Tuan, director of the Viet Duc Traffic Research Center, said that public bicycle service is a suitable model in the current traffic trend. But for this service to be really useful, besides service quality, it is also necessary to support policies from the government. In addition, it is also necessary to have a specific view on the role of public bicycles in the city’s public transport development strategy, so that these types can develop together. “If we only stop at the pilot level without the support of the city, the probability of success is not high, if it is not attached to a common development policy, it will be easy to die prematurely” – according to Mr. Tuan. . Besides, many opinions also believe that it is necessary to balance supply and demand. Encouraging people to ride bicycles is a difficult but correct orientation in sustainable urban development in the future. The development of uncontrolled public bicycles in terms of quantity, maintenance, storage, parking space, dedicated lanes for users, awareness of vehicle preservation is a challenge for urban management. And it is still important to start from the people’s consciousness to build a culture of walking and cycling… Experiences of countries Looking at the experience of mobilizing people to use bicycles of other countries, we can see: with France in activities, bicycles ranked second in physical activities of the French, after walking. In order to do this, France has implemented many measures to limit vehicles in traffic, which are motorbikes and cars that do not meet emission standards. At the same time, set up 55,000 free bike stations in 42 cities; encourage and create maximum support for people traveling by bicycle, including the elderly and children. Up to now, bicycles are the last link in the chain of people’s multimedia (train – car – subway) movement. In the Netherlands, there are more bicycles than people, with 22 million bicycles per 17 million inhabitants. In which, 25% of the population rides a bicycle every day, if in urban areas, this figure is 50% and each Dutch person rides an average of 1,000 km annually by bicycle. However, these impressive numbers do not come naturally. Before the increase in automobiles from the 60s to the 70s of the last century, accompanied by the oil crisis, the Dutch government actively invested in infrastructure for the use of bicycles, changing the importance of bicycles. people’s points for them to use bicycles more since the 70s. To promote the use of bicycles, the Netherlands has developed a bicycle parking system and gives priority to bicycles over cars and motorbikes, creating the same infrastructure for bicycles as for cars. Along with that, the Netherlands also promotes communication and teaching about the benefits of cycling habits for students right from high school, encouraging people to use mobile applications to manage their work. ride bicycle. From these parameters, the Government calculates the necessary infrastructure planning for the best for cyclists. In China, the bicycle-sharing model was once seen as an opportunity to affirm its leading position in the nation’s global fight against climate change because of its compactness and friendliness. . In order to save energy and limit pollution, the Seoul Metropolitan Government of South Korea also aims to build a nationwide bicycle network by 2030.

Lilac flowers are typical of the tropics. In Hanoi, the color of mausoleum flowers is a sign that summer is coming. In the early days of May, mausoleum blooms in many corners of the capital streets. The deep purple color of the lily-of-the-valley flowers combine with the green of the grass, creating a harmonious beauty of the colors. In Hanoi, there are streets like Kim Ma, West Lake, Dao Tan, Van Phu… planted with many mausoleum trees, in the summer the flowers bloom purple all the way. Langur flower also has many different colors: purple, pink, off-white, but perhaps the most familiar to Hanoians is purple. Purple color of mausoleum in Dao Tan street. The mausoleum trees by the West Lake welcome the sun. The solitary mausoleum tree on Dao Tan street has its own beauty. Purple flowers are reminded of fidelity, so mausoleum flowers are often associated with thorny love stories. An accidental combination in the season of lily flowers on the street. The whole road is nearly 2 km long, ring road 3.5 in Ha Dong area, purple flowers bloom on two sidewalks. The trees are planted thickly, the trees are small, but the flowers are in full bloom. Many branches laden with flowers swoop down to the ground. This is a large and spacious road with a hard divider and especially prominent two rows of very beautiful mausoleum trees. The familiar image of people under the shade of a mausoleum tree every early morning or summer afternoon. Cyclists leisurely under the shade of smoky trees. Rows of mausoleum trees on Ring Road 3.5, Ha Dong.