Tourist struck on famous Hanoi ‘train street’

A tourist in Vietnam has reportedly been hit by a train on the famous “Train Street” in the capital Hanoi.

The incident occurred on Sunday after the tourist is believed to have slipped through a barrier which had been set up in an attempt to keep people away.

The nationality of the person has not been confirmed, but they are not thought to have been seriously injured.

Local media reported that the tourist got up and left the scene following the collision, and that police are still looking for the victim.

The incident caused the train to halt and resulted in a pile up of traffic. The delayed service was travelling to Hanoi from the northern province of Lao Cai.

The so-called “Train Street” has long been a hit with tourists in Hanoi. Railway tracks run along Dien Bien Phu and Phung Hung streets in the heart of the old quarter, with residential buildings running inches away on either side.

However, the popularity of the unusual and photogenic site has previously seen tourists getting in the way of trains.

City authorities decided to crack down on the risky enterprise, telling restaurants and cafes along the street that they had until this weekend to shut up shop, citing safety concerns as tourists crowded the tiny street to frequent businesses and watch the train pass by just inches away.

This is not the first time that authorities have tried to close businesses along the “Train Street.”

There was an attempt in 2019, but the pandemic halted plans as the world began to reopen after Covid.