As National Day Approaches, Hanoi Thrives with Infrastructure and Facilities
In preparation for the National Day parade events in Hanoi, the city has arranged an impressive 1,000 public toilets, including 612 mobile units, across key locations. These facilities are strategically placed along main streets, near Ba Đình Square, parade routes, and fireworks sites to cater to the high footfall during the celebrations.
The Hanoi Urban Environment One Member Limited Company (Urenco) is responsible for transporting, installing, and operating these facilities.
Around Ba Đình Square, approximately 230 mobile toilets have been set up. Along routes leading to the grandstand, 203 units have been placed. Near exit routes from the grandstand, 90 mobile toilets can be found. For travel routes for residents, 75 units have been stationed, and 14 units are stationed at five fireworks launch sites. The remaining mobile toilets are dispersed across other main streets and wards, making up the total of 612.
In addition to these facilities, approximately 400 units have been provided by agencies, schools, hospitals, cafes, and local households, offering their facilities free of charge to the public during the events.
Maintenance and operation details include staff stationed at each mobile toilet to assist users and maintain cleanliness throughout the event period, which runs from mid-August to early September (August 15 to September 2 or 5). The city's sanitation company, URENCO, has increased street sweeping, washing, and waste collection along parade routes, with waste workers positioned about every 500 meters.
More than 6,000 youth volunteers have been mobilized to collect litter and encourage proper waste disposal. Approximately 800 rubbish bins equipped with white plastic bags have been placed along parade routes to support hygiene. Challenges such as prolonged road closures, the high concentration of visitors, and occasional littering have been addressed by adding more mobile toilets in overcrowded areas and coordinating among agencies and households to keep facilities open and clean.
Thus, Hanoi’s approach combines deploying a large number of mobile and fixed toilets across critical locations, active staffing, waste management, and community involvement to ensure sanitary conditions during the parade events. The mobile toilets are covered with camouflage-pattern green tarpaulins to blend with their surroundings, and QR codes mark free toilet locations on the online map provided by Urenco.
[Key location and number summary]
| Location | Number of Mobile Toilets | |---------------------------------|-------------------------| | Ba Đình Square vicinity | ~230 | | Parade routes leading to grandstand | ~203 | | Exit routes from grandstand | ~90 | | Parade viewing routes for residents| ~75 | | Fireworks launch sites | 14 | | Other main streets and wards | Balance to total 612 | | Toilets from agencies, households | ~400 (existing + offered) |
All mobile toilets operated roughly from August 15 to September 2-5, staffed and maintained for hygiene during the festival. The facilities are expected to accommodate more than 85,000 people, and round-the-clock staffing is available for cleaning, deodorizing, and maintenance of the facilities. The mobile units will be dismantled, and the sites restored after September 2 for handover to relevant authorities.
This initiative is part of a wider plan to ensure order, safety, and urban aesthetics during large-scale political and cultural activities. The mobile toilets are covered with camouflage-pattern green tarpaulins to blend with their surroundings, and QR codes mark free toilet locations on the online map provided by Urenco. The National Day parade and related events have boosted Hanoi’s tourism revenue, with the city maintaining strong tourism momentum, as evidenced by double-digit growth in July.
The Hanoi Urban Environment One Member Limited Company (Urenco) is not only responsible for the transportation, installation, and operation of the 1,000 public toilets but also the 400 units provided by agencies, schools, hospitals, cafes, and local households. These facilities cater not only to the high footfall during the National Day parade events but also to the daily needs of the residents, enhancing the overall home-and-garden lifestyle of the city.
In addition to strategically placing these facilities along main streets, near Ba Đình Square, parade routes, and fireworks sites, Urenco has also equipped approximately 800 rubbish bins along parade routes to support hygiene and proper waste disposal, contributing to the maintenance of the city's cleanliness and lifestyle.
