Roads and sidewalks inside an urban area in Nam Tu Liem District, Hanoi have been turned into parking lots for cars, leaving narrow spaces for traveling and other public activities.

Residents of the My Dinh 1 Urban Area in Cau Dien Ward, Nam Tu Liem District have been complaining about the encroachment for months.

L.V.N. told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper that locals like him had always parked their cars at another venue as the My Dinh 1 Urban Area does not have a basement.

“A few months ago, roads and sidewalks in the area were turned into parking lots to everyone’s surprise,” N. said.

“In the past, my two children cycled around the area every day, but now there are barely any spaces left for them,” another resident complained, blaming the smaller living spaces on the parked cars.

“How can fire trucks make their way through such cramped streets in case of fire?”

According to Tuoi Tre’s research, the pop-up parking lots are serviced.

In September 2020, Nguyen Huy Cuong, the then-deputy chairman of Nam Tu Liem District signed a temporary license to allow an enterprise to use the sidewalks and roads inside the My Dinh 1 Urban Area to provide paid parking lot service.

The sections designated for this service include some internal roads behind apartment buildings A2, B4, B5, C2, C4, C5, and C7 in the urban area with a total area of 865 square meters.

Tuoi Tre had spent about two months trying to reach out to leaders of Nam Tu Liem District regarding the issue, before an official from the People’s Committee responded on Tuesday afternoon.

“I have urged the district’s urban management unit [to deal with the problem] several times,” the official said, adding that an advisory document on the issue is still pending from the urban management unit.

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