Cameras to be installed along expressway in southern Vietnam to prevent stone throwers

Surveillance cameras will be installed on the expressway that connects Ho Chi Minh City and Dong Nai following several cases of stones being thrown at vehicles traveling on the road, threatening traffic safety.

A system of surveillance cameras will be established along the Ho Chi Minh City-Long Thanh-Dau Giay Expressway to deter stone throwers from aiming their rocks at vehicles running on the route, the Vietnam Expressway Services Engineering Joint Stock Company (VEC E), which manages the expressway, said on Thursday.

Since the expressway’s opening in January 2015, the company has received reports from eight drivers stating that their automobiles were stoned, leading to severe damage, according to Nguyen Thi Hoai Phuong, deputy director of the VEC E.

In six of the cases, the stone throwing caused damage to the windows of the vehicles, compromising the drivers’ control over their automobiles and threatening the safety of both passengers and the surrounding traffic, Phuong said.

After being notified of the situation, the VEC E worked with local police to inspect the scenes, gather statements, and provide free rescue and repair services for the victims, she added.

The company director affirmed that the stone-throwing cases are all unrelated and not connected with organized crimes targeting specific individuals or sabotaging activities between passengers bus lines.

Completion of the surveillance system is expected in late 2016, Phuong said.

The Ho Chi Minh City-Long Thanh-Dau Giay Expressway, which measures 55 kilometers, was constructed in 2009 and officially opened to traffic in February 2016.

The urban motorway, whose total investment was estimated at nearly VND21 trillion (US$939.3 million), starts at An Phu Intersection, District 2, Ho Chi Minh City and ends at Dau Giay Interchange in Dong Nai.

(Source: TTNews)