HCM City’s bus fleet currently includes over 2,200 vehicles, with around 700 already running on electricity or CNG. The rest still rely on petrol or diesel. With the latest additions, clean-fuel buses will soon make up nearly 50 per cent of the city’s fleet.

The HCM City Institute for Development Studies (HIDS) has also finalised a plan to transition delivery and ride-hailing drivers from petrol-powered motorbikes to electric vehicles.

The project targets the conversion of 80 per cent of HCM City's estimated 400,000 ride-hailing motorbikes, about 320,000 vehicles, by 2027, with the rest to be completed in 2028. Based on this timeline, HIDS proposes a full ban on petrol-powered motorbikes in ride-hailing services from 2029.

In the first phase, HCM City will prioritise a roadmap, policy framework, and support for charging infrastructure and green-energy buses, aiming for full conversion by 2030. The second phase will focus on buyback schemes, incentives for switching to electric motorbikes, and traffic zoning to prioritise clean-energy vehicles in central HCM City, Can Gio, and Con Dao.

HCM City will have a vehicle fleet of over 11 million since its recent administrative expansion. In addition to support policies for residents and businesses, expanding charging infrastructure is considered a crucial driver of the transition to electric vehicles.

HIDS proposes building around 3,000 EV charging and battery-swap stations by 2028, prioritising convenient locations such as petrol stations, public parking lots, malls, and parks.

At the same time, the Public Transport Management Centre is working with concerned agencies to develop 19 major charging stations for nearly 700 electric buses on 47 subsidised routes, set to launch in 2027, with a total investment of VND 400 billion.