Many foreigners have expressed their concern over the upcoming launch of Thao Dien Night Street in Thu Duc City under the umbrella of Ho Chi Minh City, with possible noise pollution and more serious traffic congestion caused by the night street operation being the most commonly cited reasons.

They showed their displeasure with the location of the night market in a comment section under Tuoi Tre News' recent article announcing the launch of the night market, a move by Thu Duc to boost its night-time economy.

The 465-meter-long night street spans a section of Xuan Thuy Street and borders Quoc Huong and Nguyen Van Huong Streets in Thao Dien Ward, a major expat enclave as well as a place where a slew of affluent Vietnamese are living.

It is poised to operate every Friday and Saturday from 7:00 pm to 2:00 am, starting this week. 

“Why until 2 AM? This is such unnecessary additional noise and light pollution,” a reader named Julia von Pidoll responded.

Gary Lim, hailing from Singapore, foresaw that the tranquil charm of the area would cease to exist once the night street was operational.

Several others were afraid that traffic congestion in the neighborhood would be worsened by the night street operation.

“So it will become 24h congested,” Silvia Olivieri, an Italian woman who is living in Thao Dien, commented.

Another reader named Adrian XN decried the move as poor planning.

A few others wished that this upcoming night street would not be as poorly operated as that in a tourist area in central Da Nang.

Ricky Sahni, an Indian resident currently residing in Ho Chi Minh City, expressed his hope for an adequate number of planned parking spots along the night street.

Aside from their concern over worsening traffic jams, a small number of readers argued that this would turn into a ‘floating market’ as the area is a flood-prone spot.

In contrast to the widespread discontent, a few foreign readers remained upbeat about the opening of the night street.

A Facebook user named Gabriele Comiotto expressed his hope that the night street would open throughout the week in the upcoming period, elaborating, “We need more walking streets in Saigon [a former name of Ho Chi Minh City].”

Similarly, a reader whose account is Rob Rankin praised the move as good, saying that such a night street would woo more people to Thu Duc and help improve the business performance there.

Meanwhile, a few others remained neutral in their comments, awaiting the forthcoming performance of the street.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!