ITE HCMC 2012 - On the Streets of Saigon

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is the largest city in Vietnam, with a population of over 9 million people. Ho Chi Minh City is rapidly growing, and the population is expected to exceed more than 13.5 million people in 2020. How do these people move around the city? There are cars, taxis, buses, cyclos, and motorbikes. A lot of motorbikes. There are more than 5 million motorbikes in Ho Chi Minh City., all carrying their drivers and passengers around the city from home to markets, shops, work schools etc. Most of the day and evening is "peak hour" with roads and streets full of motorbikes. The scene appears to be chaotic, but in the two weeks I was recently in Ho Ch Minh City I did not see one accident. I even went on several motorbike rides as a paying passnger, and safely arrived at my destinations.

How does a pedestrain cross from one side of teh street to the other side? I was told three Golden Rules to follow -
1) No fear
2) No running
3) No step back.
After a few days in Ho Chi Minh City I became accustomed to crossing the street without waiting for at total gap in the motorbikes. A steady walking pace was required, with the motorbike riders weaving in front or behind me to avoid an accident.

The following video shows some of the many motorbikes in Ho Chi Minh City, and some of the street scenes of market stalls that are passed on motorbikes.

Many thanks to Rolf  E. Holmgren from Ditt Internet resemagazine  http://www.reserevyn.net/ for providing this video, which he has titled "ITE HCMC 2012, On the streets of Saigon" and is about seven minutes long.