The upcoming National Day holiday on September 2 has prompted many residents in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to leave work early in hopes of avoiding traffic congestion. However, they are encountering significant delays on major routes leading out of the cities.

On August 28 at 3 PM, Anh Tho, a 25-year-old office worker, departed from her office in Cau Giay, Hanoi, to catch a bus back to Nghe An for the holiday. To avoid the usual rush hour traffic, she planned to leave three hours early. The 12-kilometer journey to the Nuoc Ngam bus station, which should take about 25 minutes, turned into a frustrating ordeal. As soon as she turned onto Pham Hung - Khuat Duy Tien street, her taxi was caught in heavy traffic. It took two hours just to reach the bus station, and by 6 PM, her bus had still not exited the city limits.

“At this speed, I’ll probably get home by dawn,” she lamented.

Similarly, Tat Dat, 26, also left early to drive to Hai Phong but found himself in a similar predicament. Departing from Cau Giay at 3:45 PM, he initially planned to take the Vanh Dai 3 route via Thanh Tri Bridge. However, traffic alerts indicated severe congestion on both sides of Vanh Dai 3, prompting him to reroute to Nhat Tan Bridge, which added several kilometers to his journey. By 4 PM, he was stuck in traffic for several kilometers on Vo Chi Cong road. After more detours, he remained trapped in the city until 5 PM.

“After more than two hours, I’m still stuck in the urban area. I considered turning back and waiting until midnight when the roads would be clearer, but the opposite direction on Vanh Dai 3 was also congested,” Dat said.

Starting from noon on August 28, residents of Hanoi began to leave the city in anticipation of the extended five-day holiday from August 29 to September 2. This surge in travel demand has put immense pressure on the transportation system. Reports from VnExpress at 3:30 PM indicated that several streets in Hanoi, including Khuat Duy Tien, Nguyen Xien, and Giải Phóng, were experiencing localized congestion. The Vanh Dai 3 elevated road, Vo Chi Cong road, and Chuong Duong Bridge were all similarly affected.

“In previous years, traffic congestion typically began in the evening, but this year, it started as early as noon,” noted the director of Dung Minh Transport Company, which operates the Hanoi - Ha Tinh route. The company has seen passenger numbers double compared to the same period last year, and despite adding 30 additional trips, they still cannot meet the demand.

In Ho Chi Minh City, the Tan Son Nhat Airport area also faced unexpected traffic pressure starting in the afternoon. Major roads such as Truong Son, Tran Quoc Hoan, Phan Thuc Duyen, and the Lang Cha Ca roundabout were heavily congested. 27-year-old Nhat Huyen, who lives in Tan Hung, left work an hour early to catch her 7 PM flight back to Nghe An. However, the 14-kilometer trip to the airport took nearly three hours. At 3:30 PM, her taxi was stuck under the Kenh Te Bridge, inching forward in the sweltering heat.

“It took 45 minutes to travel less than three kilometers, and my navigation app warned that the Nguyen Van Troi area was also congested. Fearing I would miss my check-in time at 6:15 PM, I paid the fare, grabbed my luggage, and called a ride-hailing service to continue my journey,” Huyen shared.