Hanoi, Vietnam: Accelerating the

uptake of e-mobility solutions through

stakeholder engagement
  1 JUN 2021
 
  YIQIAN ZHANG
 
  EXPLORING ISSUES THAT MATTER
In Hanoi, a city that is home to 7.7 million inhabitants, 5 million motorcycles flood the
streets every single day.

This is a staggering number that Hanoi is investing to change. As a rapidly-growing capital

and the second most populous city in Vietnam, Hanoi City is taking steps to address
unprecedented levels of motorization and traffic that have led to polluted air, greenhouse
gas emissions, and inefficient travel.
Although Hanoi City has invested in public transport infrastructure such as bus rapid transit
(BRT), public transport accounts for only 10 percent of the total trips in the city. Motorcycles’
grip on the city is strong – they represent 80 percent of trips taken.

In order to improve air quality, reduce traffic jams and reach the city’s overall goal of
creating a livable city, the deployment of sustainable last-mile solutions is critical. Hanoi City
is turning to electric mobility solutions to increase the sustainability of the transport system.

With the aim to increase the ridership of public transport and effectiveness of the currently
running BRT and the forthcoming metro rail, the city is partnering to deploy shared e-
scooters to connect people from major BRT stations to important destinations such as
shopping malls and residential areas. The e-scooters will be equipped with GPS positioning
that supports eco-routing and generates data for assessment and further improvement.

This last-mile connectivity demonstration project is a part of Hanoi City’s work

with SOLUTIONSplus, which brings together highly committed cities, industry, research,
implementing organizations, and finance partners and establishes a global platform for
shared, public, and commercial e-mobility solutions to kick start the transition towards low-
carbon urban mobility.
Engaging with the stakeholders
The uptake of e-mobility requires ongoing institutional support and governance that
engages a diversity of stakeholders. These stakeholders include not only the public
authorities, such as local and national government representatives but also residents who
use these systems – like pedestrians, cyclists, public transport users –as well as business
and manufacturing representatives, service providers – like charging infrastructure
operators and utility partners – and researchers.

Keeping this in mind, Hanoi City is investing in establishing close working relationships with
many stakeholders to understand their needs, identify problems, and monitor and evaluate
the project, in order to ensure a successful demonstration project.
Approaches to effective stakeholder engagement 
Navigating and listening to all stakeholder groups is the largest challenge. A variety of
measures, information packages, and marketing strategies will be established, including
public meetings, websites, surveys, focus group discussions, and a series of communication
campaigns.

Feedback and data will be gathered via surveys during workshops, meetings, and
conferences. To gain insights into the performance of the system, the city will also develop
an evaluation matrix to measure the effectiveness and efficiency of the outreach activities
and the overall demonstration project.

Potential users in the demonstration area need to be informed about the benefits of e-
mobility solutions to encourage them to opt for more sustainable modes of transport rather
than private vehicles. Posters and flyers will be disseminated at the BRT stations and on the
buses to raise awareness.

To ensure further buy-in from businesses, operators, and service providers, Hanoi City will
also identify pathways for cooperation by establishing appropriate regulatory frameworks,
financial incentives, along with training and toolkits to enhance the capacity of local
stakeholders.

The integration of shared e-scooters with BRTs and metros requires route planning and
smart ticketing, and an understanding of the functionality of existing applications for
transport (e.g. Timbuyt for buses) is essential. Charging infrastructure development and
battery solutions also need to be planned with the involvement of service providers.
The role of communication in ensuring a successful planning and implementation process 
Planning for transportation is not limited to infrastructure and physical improvements and
may not produce results overnight, but also includes the social issues that emerge from the
residents, businesses, and other stakeholders.

Communication, advocacy, and promotion play a key role in strengthening partnerships and
facilitating systematic change. Public engagement is a challenging task that requires
resources, negotiations, and compromises, but it is pivotal to ensuring that potential
environmental, social, and economic benefits of sustainable mobility projects come to
fruition.

This blog is based on the interview produced by the University of Transport and Technology in
Hanoi, Vietnam, as part of the  SOLUTIONSplus Global E-learning Programme