Minister of Transport Nguyen Van The on Sunday approved a trial for inter-provincial travel on passenger buses from Oct. 12 to 20. Passengers from low-risk areas travelling to similar zones will see transportation resume with no restrictions, he said.

However, people from high-risk areas must either be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 or have recovered from the disease within the last six months, and test negative for the coronavirus at least 72 hours prior, he added.

People traveling to areas with higher risks must test negative for the coronavirus within the last 72 hours, while those with symptoms like coughing, muscle aches and fever will not be allowed to board buses, he said.

Drivers and attendants must be vaccinated and tested with similar requirements. When testing certificates are about to expire, they must be tested before they can resume their journey. If any display symptoms, they must report to authorities promptly.

The number of inter-provincial journeys per day must not exceed 30 percent of the daily total, with passengers required to be sufficiently distanced.

As Vietnam prepares a transition toward from zero-Covid strategy to living with Covid, the transport ministry has issued a road transportation guideline starting October. But several localities still shy away from allowing buses to resume traveling out of coronavirus fears.