Many people in Binh Duong Province, southern Vietnam place water cans, buckets, basins, and concrete blocks on the roadbed to save space for trade.

The makeshift space savers can be seen on a bypass along Pham Van Dong Street, which leads to two apartment buildings and a hospital.

Traders do it to prevent drivers from parking their cars and taxis there. There are no signs restricting parking on the road.

A hu tieu (rice noodles) trader puts many 30-liter water cans on the bypass to occupy a space for her business.

At 4:00 pm every day, she puts away the cans and arranges tables, chairs, and a cart in the section.

If she does not place such water cans, drivers will park cars there and it is hard to ask them to leave, the trader claimed.

Not far from the site, a sugarcane juice seller places many plastic water cans, chairs, and boxes on the roadbed.

Phuong Thao, the owner of a nearby hair salon, said the sugarcane juice seller wanted to save space for trade.

A woman even plants a large umbrella in the middle of the road to have a space for selling banh cuon (steamed rice rolls).

Chung, a ride-hailing driver, who often parks his vehicle there to wait for customers, said he had seen a truck hit the umbrella.

It is dangerous but he cannot complain, Chung added.

Residents' occupancy of spaces for business on the roadbed causes danger to commuters and affects the urban landscape, a local resident said.

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