The Traffic Police Department (Ministry of Public Security) announced that the inspection will focus on three key areas: activities of the traffic safety management department; quality of driver training and instruction; and the operation of journey monitoring devices and in-vehicle cameras.

The department will also collaborate on reviewing technical safety regulations for sleeper buses, especially emergency exit systems and operating speeds. Gaps in transport business management will be reviewed and rectified promptly. "The lives and property of passengers cannot be left solely to drivers and vehicle owners," according to the Traffic Police Department.

A passenger bus burned to a bare frame in an incident that killed 7 people. *Photo: Ministry of Public Security*.

This inspection comes amid a rise in complex accidents involving passenger buses. From 1/2 to 5/7, these types of accidents have resulted in 199 fatalities. In less than a week, two accidents have caused 11 deaths.

Most recently, around 2h on 21/7, a sleeper bus carrying 36 people was traveling on National Highway 1A from Khanh Hoa to TP HCM. Upon reaching Hung Thinh commune, Dong Nai province, the driver, drowsy, was startled and swerved right to avoid a vehicle traveling in the same direction, colliding with a guardrail. Following the impact, the vehicle's undercarriage caught fire, engulfing the bus and resulting in 7 fatalities and 5 injuries.

Viet An