Urban workers leave home before dawn to secure parking spots at work

A shortage of parking spaces in Vietnam's major cities is forcing office workers to leave home unusually early to secure a spot near work, while others face costly parking fees or lengthy walks from their cars.

Every morning at 6:05 a.m., Huu Thang leaves his home in Hanoi's Phu Dien Ward for his office seven kilometers away in Cau Giay Ward.

The journey usually takes around 35 minutes, giving him a chance to claim one of approximately 15 parking spaces available to employees at his office building.

But leaving just 10 minutes later can turn the commute into a 45–50-minute ordeal as traffic builds along the Phu Dien–Xuan Thuy–Cau Giay–Pham Van Bach route.

By the time he arrives, the parking spaces are usually full, forcing him to find somewhere outside the building and pay VND50,000 (US$1.94) a day.

Even then, parking is far from guaranteed. Most available spaces are on sidewalks not officially designated for parking or in vacant lots with little supervision.

The building's basement has limited parking reserved for managers and senior staff, leaving Thang to compete for ground-level spaces shared by other employees and visitors.

To secure a place, he must arrive about an hour before his workday begins. "To leave for work at 6:05 a.m., I have to wake up at 5:30 a.m.," he said. "I considered paying VND800,000 a month for outside parking so I could sleep longer, but that's a considerable extra expense."

The shortage also discourages employees from taking their cars out during the day. Some of Thang's colleagues avoid driving to lunch or running errands because they fear losing their parking spots.

Tuan Hung, a department head at a technology company, has access to basement parking but faces similar difficulties.

If he arrives 30 minutes late, all the marked spaces are occupied. Security guards then help him squeeze his car against a wall along the driveway.

For workers unable or unwilling to arrive early, the daily struggle to park has prompted some to rethink how they commute.

Ngoc Tram, an office worker in Hanoi, has no assigned parking space, while her company provides only a small number of spots for staff.

She initially tried leaving home earlier to beat her colleagues to the available spaces, but eventually found the routine too exhausting.

Parking outside was another option, but she was reluctant to leave her car keys with attendants, and nearby parking facilities were frequently full.

Instead, she now takes the metro and brings a folding bicycle for part of her journey.

The change has spared her the daily stress of searching for parking while giving her an opportunity to exercise.

Vietnam's parking shortage has intensified as car ownership has surged, driven partly by the growing availability of more affordable models.

After a brief slowdown following the Covid-19 pandemic, automobile sales rebounded strongly.

In 2024, Vietnam recorded sales of 494,300 vehicles, up 22% from the previous year. Sales climbed another 22% to more than 604,000 in 2025, surpassing the previous peak of 508,000 in 2022.

But parking infrastructure in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City has struggled to keep pace with the rapid growth in vehicle numbers.

Figures presented at a conference on Hanoi's Traffic Congestion Reduction Project for 2025–2030 showed that the capital had approximately 9.2 million motor vehicles on its roads by late 2025, including around 1.2 million from other provinces.

The total included 1.1 million cars and 6.9 million motorcycles.

However, land allocated for parking and other stationary-vehicle infrastructure met only 8–10% of the city's parking demand.

Ho Chi Minh City faced a similar shortage. As of March 2026, the city had nearly 13 million vehicles, including 1.48 million cars and 11.5 million motorcycles, while parking facilities met just 7–10% of demand.

Both cities are exploring ways to expand parking capacity.

Hanoi is considering temporarily converting public land, school grounds, public spaces and stalled construction sites into parking areas, as well as designating additional streets for parking.

The capital also plans to build 11 parking lots between 2026 and 2030, prioritizing areas with the greatest demand.

Ho Chi Minh City is reviewing its urban planning regulations, identifying public land suitable for parking and seeking greater private investment in parking facilities.

Proposals include interest subsidies covering 50% of borrowing costs for qualifying projects for a specified period, underground parking integrated with public transportation, and parking spaces beneath bridges and overpasses.

Limited supply is pushing parking costs higher. From Oct. 15, Hanoi introduced new fees for temporary parking on streets and sidewalks.

In central urban areas, drivers of passenger cars with fewer than nine seats must pay VND50,000 per hour, while motorcycle parking fees have risen to VND10,000.

City authorities say the higher charges are intended to manage parking demand, encourage drivers to use designated parking facilities and reduce prolonged parking on roads and sidewalks.