More than 200 drivers will participate in the capital city's drive to contain the novel coronavirus after they have been vaccinated with support from Hanoi's departments of Transport and Health.

This is the first round of vaccination against Covid-19 for drivers in the capital city, according to Deputy Director of the Hanoi Department of Transport Dao Viet Long.

Over the past time, on the recommendations of transport associations and enterprises, the department has proposed to the Steering Committee for Covid-19 prevention and control to prioritize injections for drivers of bus, airport taxi, and long-distance coaches and trucks, Long said.

A fleet of Mai Linh Group’s taxicabs in Hanoi. Photo: Ngoc Anh

The municipal Department of Transport recently allowed the operation of 200 taxi cabs to serve local residents in emergency situations during the social distancing regime in place in the capital city since July 24.

The emergency situations include hospitalization, hospital discharge, and airport transfer. The fleet of 200 taxicabs is distributed throughout all districts and stationed at major hospitals.

All 200 vehicles have been registered and approved for emergency use by the Department of Transport, according to Nguyen Cong Hung, director of Mai Linh Group’s Hanoi office.

To ensure epidemiological safety, the cars have been equipped with transparent partitions to separate passengers from drivers and reduce the risks of Covid-19 transmission, Hung added.

He stressed that customers and drivers are required to wear face masks, roll the car windows down at all times. Drivers must prepare hand sanitizer, and fumigate the vehicles after each ride.

Passengers are encouraged to pay through contactless payment means to reduce coronavirus transmission risks, Hung noted, adding that people can download Mai Linh Taxi app or call the group’s hotline available at 1055 for the service.

This is the second time that Hanoi has resorted to stringent Directive No.16, the first was in April 2020, which lasted for nearly a month.

The capital city has reported 1,082 Covid-19 infections since late April, when the fourth wave started wreaking havoc in Vietnam, according to the municipal Department of Health.