From early morning on January 5, traffic volume surged across the capital, with prolonged gridlock reported on multiple major routes.
Morning temperatures ranged from about 13 to 17 degrees Celsius.
At around 7 am, large numbers of vehicles poured into the Tran Duy Hung-Hoang Minh Giam intersection heading toward the city centre, with long lines of cars and motorbikes moving slowly through the Trung Hoa underpass.
On Le Van Luong Street toward Giang Vo, bus rapid transit services were forced to crawl and at times came to a near standstill due to congestion.
Severe traffic jams were also reported on De La Thanh (photo above) and Nguy Nhu Kon Tum streets, where vehicle queues stretched long during peak hours.
On Ring Road No 2, cars and motorbikes lined up while waiting at traffic lights.
Nguyen Trai Street saw dense traffic in both directions.
Many motorbike riders continued to mount pavements to bypass congestion.
Some riders were forced to weave between cars in search of a way through, adding to traffic disorder and raising safety concerns.
Passengers on buses stuck amid the congestion appeared visibly fatigued as travel times stretched longer than usual.
By around 9 am, despite the end of peak hours, many inner-city intersections remained heavily congested.
