The Van Thanh Pedestrian Bridge lies in a crowded area near the junction of Ung Van Khiem Street, Nguyen Huu Canh Bridge and Saigon Bridge in Binh Thanh District but is always quiet. Many people instead prefer to cross the road to Dien Bien Phu Street just some 500 metres away.
A student, Thanh Huong, said that she and many students of the HCM City University of Technology cross this road every day to take the bus to school. "We cross the road as it's faster," she said. "If the bridge was built closer to the bus station, more people would use it."
The bridge has become a place for gathering drug users who leave lots of syringes around.
There are five pedestrian bridges along Pham Van Dong Avenue but most of them see few travellers.
Lots of rubbish was dumped nearby.
There is a similar situation on Vo Van Kiet Street. The bridge instead is used by people going for a walk or doing physical exercises.
A bridge near a hospital in Binh Thanh District has lifts at either end to transport patients but many people still choose to pass the crowded streets instead of using the pedestrian bridge.
At night, many pedestrian bridges in the city have become places for homeless people to sleep.
