Circular No. 138/1999/TT-BGTVT guiding the implementation of Government Decree No. 39/CP dated July 5, 1996 on ensuring railway traffic safety and order and guiding the implementation of Government Decree No. 76/1998/NĐ-CP dated September 26, 1998 amending and supplementing certain articles of Government Decree No. 39/CP dated July 5, 1996.

CIRCULAR

Supplemental Guidelines for Implementing Decree No. 39/CP dated July 5, 1996 of the Government on Ensuring Railway Traffic Safety and Order, and Guidelines for Implementing Decree No. 76/1998/NĐ-CP dated September 26, 1998 of the Government Amending and Supplementing Certain Provisions of Decree No. 39/CP dated July 5, 1996.Supplementing and amending certain provisions of Decree No. 39/CP dated July 5, 1996.

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I- Pursuant to Article 65 of Decree No. 39/CP dated July 5, 1996 of the Government, the Ministry of Transport issued Circular No. 50TT/PC dated March 1, 1997, now the Ministry of Transport supplements and issues additional guidelines for implementing certain specific clauses as follows:

1- The signaling system referred to in Clause 1, Article 2 of Decree No. 39/CP includes: telephone and telegraph wires, railway signal wires both overhead and cable wires, radio towers, and antennas (hereinafter collectively referred to as railway communication wires abbreviated as RCTW), together with stations and substations forming a communication equipment system serving command, ensuring train safety, and production management needs of the Railways Department.

2- The scope of safety assurance for RCTW as stipulated in Article 21 of Decree No. 39/CP shall be understood as follows:

a- The outermost wire horizontally is the wire at the outermost position of the crossbar; the outermost wire vertically is the first and last wire hung on the crossbar, counted from the top of the pole downwards.

b- The distance specified in Clause 1 and Clause 2 of Article 21 of Decree No. 39/CP applies to cases where RCTW are located in normal terrain without crossing roads, rivers with boat traffic, or intersecting with other communication wires or being close and intersecting with power transmission lines.

c- The application of current national technical standards mentioned in Clause 3 of Article 21 and Article 64 of Decree No. 39/CP to determine safe distances between RCTW and power transmission lines and other communication wires, roads, rivers with boat traffic; buildings, trees is regulated in the following documents:

c-1- Current Technical Operation Regulations of Vietnam Railways;

c-2- Overhead Communication Wire Construction Regulations QP 01-76 issued along with Decision No. 831/QĐ dated June 1, 1976 of the General Post Office Administration;

c-3- Regulations on Protecting Communication Wires and Intercommunication Lines issued along with Decision No. 87/HĐBT dated March 27, 1985 of the Chairman of the Council of Ministers;

c-4- Temporary Regulations on Preventing the Influence of Power Transmission Lines on Communication Lines, Radio and Railway Signals QPVN 12-78 dated May 30, 1978 approved and issued on January 1, 1979 by the State Science and Technology Commission;

c-5- Electrical Equipment Regulations - Power Transmission Line System 11 TCN 19 84 issued along with Decision No. 507 ĐL/KT dated December 22, 1984 of the Minister of Electric Power (now the Ministry of Industry);

c-6- Standards for Permissible Electric Field Strengths at Industrial Frequencies and Inspection Regulations at Workplaces issued along with Decision No. 183 NL/KHKT dated April 13, 1994 of the Minister of Energy (now the Ministry of Industry);

c-7- 500KV Electrical Equipment Regulations, Overhead Power Transmission Line No. 18 TCN-03-92 issued along with Decision No. 450 NL/KHKT dated September 23, 1992 of the Minister of Energy (now the Ministry of Industry).

3- The construction and major repair of RCTW including the construction of radio towers and antennas must comply with the regulations set forth in Article 26 of Decree No. 39/CP.

4- The clearance of structures, houses, and trees within the safety limit of railway communication and signaling wires shall be carried out according to Article 14 of Decree No. 39/CP as follows:

a- Architectural structures, houses, old trees, and power transmission lines in the North that were established before the issuance of Decree No. 120/CP dated March 18, 1963 of the Government; in the South before the issuance of Resolution No. 76/CP dated March 25, 1977 of the Council of Ministers regarding guidance on implementation and unified legislation throughout the country, the owner must present documents to the local authorities for resolution according to regulations.

b- Architectural structures, houses, old trees, and power transmission lines in the North and South established after the issuance of the documents mentioned in point a of item 4 hereunder must comply with the provisions of Decree No. 39/CP.

II - Pursuant to Article 3 of Decree No. 76/1998/NĐ-CP dated September 26, 1998 of the Government, the Ministry of Transport provides the following guidelines for implementation:

1- Clause 1 of Article 1 of Decree No. 76/1998/NĐ-CP amends Clause 4 of Article 29 of Decree No. 39/CP:

"4- Poles and telephone poles constructed after the issuance of this Decree must be placed at a distance equal to their height from the edge of the railway track."

To ensure railway traffic safety, poles and telephone poles constructed before the issuance of Decree No. 39/CP that violate the provisions of Articles 17 and 18 of Decree No. 39/CP concerning the safety of railway traffic infrastructure must be removed or relocated according to regulations.

Power transmission lines passing above railway tracks must comply with the regulations on airspace safety limits for railways as stipulated in Article 18 of Decree No. 39/CP.

2- Clause 2 of Article 1 of Decree No. 76/1998/NĐ-CP of the Government supplements Clause 6 of Article 42 of Decree No. 39/CP as follows:

Strictly prohibit "carrying passengers or goods without tickets," which means:

- Determining passengers traveling by train with passenger tickets and fare tickets based on the current Passenger and Baggage Transportation Regulations of Vietnam Railways;

- Determining transported goods with fare tickets based on the current Goods Transportation Regulations of Vietnam Railways.

- This strictly prohibits railway employees from carrying people or goods without tickets for personal gain (bribery).

3- Clause 3 of Article 1 of Decree No. 76/1998/NĐ-CP amends Clause 2 of Article 44 of Decree No. 39/CP:

"2. In cases where trains need to be consolidated or parked occupying level crossings, the time for temporarily stopping road traffic must be implemented according to the regulations of the Ministry of Transport." The operation time for consolidating trains occupying level crossings at both ends of the station and in cases where trains are parked due to accidents on level crossings must be implemented according to the current Level Crossing Regulations.

For level crossings at both ends of the station, when consolidating trains requires a longer occupation time than prescribed, the Ministry of Transport authorizes the head of Vietnam Railways Corporation to specify the details but the interruption of road traffic must not exceed 8 minutes.

4- Clause 4 of Article 1 of Decree No. 76/1998/NĐ-CP supplements Clause 3 of Article 45 of Decree No. 39/CP:

"3. The Ministry of Transport shall stipulate the time for closing railway-road shared bridge barriers. The implementation of the time for closing railway-road shared bridge barriers shall be carried out in accordance with the regulations set forth in the Bridge Regulations issued together with Decision No. 336/PC dated March 22, 1982 of the Ministry of Transport, specifically as follows:"

Road barriers must be closed at a time ensuring the bridge is clear before the train arrives at least two minutes and not more than five minutes prior. Railway signals must be opened for the train to enter the bridge at least one minute and thirty seconds before the train arrives.

For long bridges or bridges with high traffic volumes, additional time beyond the specified period may be required to clear road traffic. The Ministry of Transport authorizes the head of Vietnam Railways Corporation to specify the exact time for each bridge, but the duration of road traffic interruption shall not exceed eight minutes.

5- Point d Clause 6 Article 1 Decree 76/1998/ND-CP amends Clause 1 Article 56 ND39/CP:

Regarding the matter of "selling tickets exceeding the prescribed plan," it shall be applied as follows:

- This applies only to trains that sell tickets based on seat or berth numbers; it does not apply to trains involved in accidents or those with abnormally damaged carriages during transportation.

- The ticket selling plan is approved by the head of Vietnam Railways Corporation or a person authorized by the head of Vietnam Railways Corporation in normal circumstances and in cases of sudden increases in passenger numbers.

6- Point đ Clause 6 Article 1 Decree 76/1998/ND-CP amends Clause 1 Article 56 Decree 39/CP:

"đ. After an accident occurs, failing to protect the scene; failing to provide emergency medical care to the injured."

The handling of railway traffic accidents must comply with the provisions of Article 6 of Decree 39/CP and Circular No. 69/TT-LB dated February 22, 1993, jointly issued by the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Home Affairs, guiding the prevention and resolution of accidents involving people in railway traffic.

7- Point e Clause 6 Article 1 Decree 76/1998/ND-CP amends Clause 1 Article 56 Decree 39/CP:

"e. Loading and unloading goods and luggage in violation of regulations causing imbalance, overload, or exceeding the permissible dimensions and securing requirements."

The loading, unloading, and securing of goods shall be carried out in accordance with Decision No. 180 DS/PC dated February 3, 1975, of the General Department of Railways (now Vietnam Railway Corporation) regarding the Rules for Loading, Securing Goods, and Technical Conditions for Utilizing Carriage Load Limits.

The load limit of the carriage is marked on the side of the carriage.

On railway lines with restricted load limits, goods must be loaded strictly in accordance with the regulations of Vietnam Railways Corporation.

When loading goods, it must be ensured that they are correctly centered within the carriage. In special cases, permissible off-center loading may be allowed as follows:

a. The lateral offset of the center of gravity of the goods from the vertical plane through the longitudinal axis of the carriage shall not exceed 100mm;

b. The longitudinal offset of the center of gravity of the goods from the vertical plane through the transverse axis of the carriage shall not exceed one-eighth of the distance between the two load-bearing frames;

c. In cases where goods exceed the permissible dimensions or weight, permission from the head of Vietnam Railways Corporation or a person authorized by the head shall be obtained. 

III- IMPLEMENTATION:

Chairmen of People's Committees of provinces and centrally governed cities shall disseminate this Circular to the public and supervise its implementation within their jurisdiction and responsibilities.

Directors of the Ministry of Transport Office; General Director of Vietnam Railway Corporation; Directors of the Highway Administration, River Transport Administration, and Maritime Administration, and Directors of Provincial Departments of Transport and Construction shall direct and supervise the implementation of this Circular.

Any issues encountered during implementation and recommendations should be promptly reported to the Ministry for guidance on resolution.

This Circular takes effect fifteen days from the date of signature.