Vietnam Backs out from plan to ban petrol bikes

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HANOI: Vietnam has significantly backtracked on its ambitious plan to ban fossil-fuel-powered motorbikes, illustrating the severe challenges of shifting to electric vehicles.

Originally aiming to bar petrol bikes from a massive 26-square-kilometre historic central zone to combat toxic air pollution, officials have dramatically scaled the proposal down. The new trial covers just 11 streets across a tiny 0.5-square-kilometre area, and even that limited weekend restriction is now delayed.

With seven million motorbikes dominating the capital, the reversal highlights the immense public dependency on two-wheelers. Delays in building essential electric charging infrastructure, alongside strong opposition from major manufacturers like Honda, ultimately forced the government's retreat.

While local EV-maker VinFast has seen sales rise, electric models still represent only a fraction of the market, proving that Hanoi's transition away from petrol will take much longer than planned.