Sleeper bus driver, owner fined over $2,000 for carrying excess passengers in south-central Vietnam
Vietnamese traffic police have fined a sleeper bus driver and the vehicle’s owner a combined VND52.5 million (US$2,019) for carrying passengers in excess of the permitted limit on a south-central Vietnam expressway, police said on Tuesday.
A sleeper bus found carrying more passengers than permitted is stopped and inspected by traffic police on the Cam Lam–Nha Trang expressway, south-central Vietnam, February 3, 2026. Photo: C08
Officers from the No. 6 highway traffic patrol team stopped the bus at 10:25 am on the Cam Lam–Nha Trang Expressway and found it was carrying 53 passengers, seven more than the allowed capacity of 46.
The driver, identified as T.V.T., 44, from north-central Ha Tinh Province, was fined VND10.5 million ($404) for violating passenger capacity regulations, police said.
The vehicle's owner was fined VND42 million ($1,615) for allowing the violation, bringing the total penalty to VND52.5 million.
Traffic police said vehicle volumes, particularly long-distance passenger buses, have increased sharply ahead of the 2026 Lunar New Year holiday, which is just some ten days away, raising safety risks on major highways.
Authorities urged transport operators and drivers to comply strictly with passenger limits and safety regulations and advised travelers to avoid boarding overcrowded buses during the holiday period.
Bao Anh - Minh Hoa / Tuoi Tre News