"Around Town"

Traffic safety, lesson two...In recent months, those plying Hanoi's roads may have noticed that the speed of traffic on the city's Ba Trieu Street has increased to make it a virtual raceway.

Yet, only several months ago lights were installed at each intersection over the course of two kilometers.

A connection?

But of course, discovered Mr. Nguyen: the lights are synchronized to remain green for vehicles travelling at about 60 miles per hour.

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And lastly, they're not near any roadways . . . The good news is that Vietnam can join the ranks of countries with semi-automated tollbooths, now that the $540,000 Chuong Duong Bridge collection station has been installed. The booth links Hanoi with the nearby countryside.

The bad news is that the booths are a bit, well, technically oversophisticated.

Toll-booth officials were made to account for the miles-long traffic pileups caused by their recent step toward efficiency, and their explanation was quite rational.

"Delayed traffic is due to incomplete installation of equipment, too many different kinds of tickets, inability of staff to learn how to use the machines, and lack of power to run the machines."

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The lighter side of monsoons . . . Water engulfed thousands of two-floor homes built outside the Hanoi dike that usually holds back the famed Red River, causing residents to station themselves on their rooftops and guard their furniture, a local annual rite.

Curiously, the ensuing spirit was more festive than disaster-struck.

Business opportunities: taxiing people and their things from roof to road (twenty cents per), and bringing beer and entertainment to the roof-bound.

In a possibly related story, during that period local cinemas noted a 500 percent attendance increase during the same period.