[Reading level: B2 – Upper Intermediate]
Instead of wandering pavements while waiting for their batteries to charge, many electric motorbike drivers in Hanoi have turned to privately run charging stations that double as accommodation, where they can sleep, shower, do laundry, and escape the cold at affordable prices.
At 1:30 p.m. on January 6, the sound of an alarm clock rang out from a loft in a boarding house located in an alley in Van Phuc Ward, Ha Dong District. Ngoc Toan, 31, rubbed his eyes, crawled out from under his blanket, and stepped down a steep iron staircase. Below, his electric motorbike showed an 80% battery level after more than an hour of charging.
“I’ll wait another 30 minutes for it to be fully charged, then grind out the afternoon shift,” Toan said. Around him, two other drivers were still fast asleep during their midday break.
Toan is one of thousands of ride-hailing drivers in the capital taking part in a “migration” from gasoline-powered vehicles to electric ones. While the transition helps cut fuel costs, it also creates a “dead time” of 1.5 to 3 hours for each full charge.
It is precisely this time gap that has given rise to a new service model: charging stations combined with low-cost boarding houses for app-based drivers.
A localized version of “hammock cafés”
At Thanh Loi’s charging station in Van Phuc, peak hours around noon usually see about 20 vehicles charging at the same time. The space is clearly divided into two areas: the ground floor for vehicles and charging cables, and adjacent enclosed dormitory-style rooms.
Loi said he launched the model in October 2025 after observing the inconvenience faced by drivers in northern Vietnam. Initially, he studied the “hammock café” model that combines vehicle charging and resting, which is very popular in Ho Chi Minh City. However, when applying it in Hanoi, he was forced to “localize” it.
“Drivers in the South like lying in hammocks for ventilation because it’s hot all year round. But people in the North prefer privacy and enclosure, and especially need to avoid the biting cold of winter or the damp chill of spring. So, I removed the hammocks and invested in bunk beds, warm mattresses, and two-way air conditioners,” Loi explained.
The changes immediately attracted customers. Just one week after opening, all 30 charging outlets at Loi’s station were constantly occupied. The station’s Zalo group quickly reached 200 members registering charging schedules by day or by month.
Service fees are calculated to match drivers’ budgets and are comparable to home charging: 20,000–30,000 VND per single charge with a midday rest included. For those needing long-term accommodation, a monthly package of 1.5–1.6 million VND covers overnight lodging, electricity, water, air conditioning, hot water, and unlimited vehicle charging.
“Currently, drivers account for about 30% of my tenants,” said Loi, who owns a chain of around 30 rental rooms.
About seven kilometers away, in Thanh Liet (Thanh Tri District), another charging station is also bustling. This facility uses the basement and ground floor to install charging points, with specialized fire extinguishers densely mounted on the walls. The upper floors have been converted into dormitory-style sleeping rooms.
At a site on Nguyen Xien Street, a charging service combined with hammock resting priced at 20,000–26,000 VND for three hours is always overloaded. Vu Hoang said he launched this model in 2024 and currently operates two locations in Hanoi. “Next week we’ll offer free charging to attract drivers to use our repair services, because Hanoi now has quite a few charging points,” he said.
According to a VnExpress survey, in just the last few months of 2025, more than 20 such private charging stations have appeared across Hanoi, concentrated in densely populated wards such as Thanh Xuan, Dong Da, Hoang Mai, and Ha Dong. These “coordinates” are rapidly shared in drivers’ online groups, helping them plan routes proactively and avoid running out of battery on the road.
Solving the problem of fire-risk “stigma”
The boom in this service is not merely driven by the need for rest, but also serves as an escape from a harsh reality: electric vehicle drivers face serious difficulties finding rental housing that allows battery charging.
Before moving into a charging station in Thanh Liet, Manh Linh, 26, from Nam Dinh, endured difficult times. After borrowing money to buy an electric motorbike to reduce operating costs, he encountered resistance from his former landlord. “Whenever they saw me bring an electric bike home, the landlord frowned. They banned charging inside the house, even overnight charging in the shared yard, because they feared fires,” Linh recalled.
To keep working, Linh was forced into a “nomadic” lifestyle. By day he drove, but at night or midday he drifted around shopping mall lobbies or park benches for four to five hours waiting for the battery to fill. “Even eating a bowl of pho or taking a nap felt uneasy because I was afraid my charger would be stolen or someone would unplug it. That constant anxiety drained me more than ten hours of riding on the road,” the driver said.
That anxiety is shared by Dang Khoa, 26, a former pharmaceutical sales representative who switched to ride-hailing six months ago. Living with relatives, every time he plugged in his bike, tension filled the household. “They saw the bike as a ticking time bomb. The psychological pressure made me afraid to charge at home, forcing me to look for an external solution,” Khoa said.
Four months ago, Khoa moved entirely into a charging station. For 1.5 million VND per month, he found peace of mind. The electrical system there is designed for high loads, with stable three-phase power that allows faster charging than typical household electricity. More importantly, fear of fire hazards is eased thanks to better fire prevention systems than those in informal boarding houses.
“Here, someone watches the bikes, someone unplugs them when charging is done, and I can sleep soundly on a proper mattress without worrying about being kicked out,” said Manh Linh, who has also recently moved in to share accommodation at a charging station.
[xóm trọ pin 3]
Drivers eat and rest while waiting for their vehicles to charge at a station in Van Phuc, Hanoi, afternoon January 6. – Tài xế ăn uống, nghỉ ngơi trong khi chờ sạc xe tại một trạm ở Vạn Phúc, Hà Nội chiều 6/1.
However, the spontaneous growth of these concentrated charging points also raises new safety management challenges. Although operators claim to be fully equipped with fire extinguishers, the concentration of dozens of lithium batteries charging simultaneously in confined spaces, combined with flammable bedding materials, still poses risks if not closely monitored under the latest fire safety standards.
At 2 p.m., the alarm rang for the second time. Ngoc Toan hurriedly unplugged the charger and checked his ride-hailing app. The bike was fully charged, and so was he. He rushed out onto the street, merging into the flow of people to continue making a living on a cold winter day.
Source: https://vnexpress.net/xom-tro-pin-cua-tai-xe-xe-dien-ha-noi-5002868.html
WORD BANK:
wander /ˈwɑːn.dɚ/ (v): lang thang, đi không mục đích
pavement /ˈpeɪv.mənt/ (n): vỉa hè
charging station /ˈtʃɑːr.dʒɪŋ ˌsteɪ.ʃən/ (n): trạm sạc
double as sth /ˈdʌb.əl æz/ (v): kiêm làm gì, đóng vai trò kép
laundry /ˈlɑːn.dri/ (n): đồ giặt; tiệm giặt là
loft /lɑːft/ (n): gác xép
a boarding house /ə ˈbɔːr.dɪŋ haʊs/ (n): nhà trọ (có cho ở dài hạn)
alley /ˈæl.i/ (n): hẻm, ngõ nhỏ
rub one’s eyes /rʌb wʌnz aɪz/ (v): dụi mắt
crawl out from sth /krɔːl aʊt frʌm/ (v): bò ra khỏi
grind out + a shift /ɡraɪnd aʊt/ (v): cày cuốc, làm việc vất vả hết ca
fast asleep /fæst əˈsliːp/ (adj): ngủ say
ride-hailing driver /raɪd ˈheɪ.lɪŋ ˈdraɪ.vɚ/ (n): tài xế gọi xe công nghệ
app-based driver /ˈæp beɪst ˈdraɪ.vɚ/ (n): tài xế làm việc qua ứng dụng
migration /maɪˈɡreɪ.ʃən/ [B2] (n): sự di cư
gasoline-powered vehicle /ˈɡæs.ə.liːn ˈpaʊərd ˈviː.ə.kəl/ (n): phương tiện chạy bằng xăng
transition /trænˈzɪʃ.ən/ [B2] (n): sự chuyển đổi
gap /ɡæp/ (n): khoảng cách, sự chênh lệch
adjacent /əˈdʒeɪ.sənt/ [B2] (adj): liền kề
enclosed /ɪnˈkloʊzd/ (adj): kín, bao kín
initially /ɪˈnɪʃ.əl.i/ [B2] (adv): ban đầu
hammock /ˈhæm.ək/ (n): võng
ventilation /ˌven.t̬əlˈeɪ.ʃən/ (n): sự thông gió
the biting cold of winter /ˈbaɪ.t̬ɪŋ koʊld/ (n): cái lạnh cắt da của mùa đông
the damp chill of spring /dæmp tʃɪl/ (n): cái lạnh ẩm của mùa xuân
bunk bed /ˈbʌŋk bed/ (n): giường tầng
mattress /ˈmæt.rəs/ (n): nệm, đệm
occupied /ˈɑː.kjə.paɪd/ (adj): đang có người sử dụng
match sth /mætʃ/ (v): phù hợp, tương xứng
comparable to sth /ˈkɑːm.pər.ə.bəl/ [B2] (adj): có thể so sánh với
package /ˈpæk.ɪdʒ/ (n): gói, trọn gói
lodging /ˈlɑː.dʒɪŋ/ (n): chỗ ở tạm
tenant /ˈten.ənt/ (n): người thuê nhà
bustling /ˈbʌs.lɪŋ/ (adj): nhộn nhịp, tấp nập
fire extinguisher /ˈfaɪr ɪkˌstɪŋ.ɡwɪ.ʃɚ/ (n): bình chữa cháy
mount sth somewhere /maʊnt/ (v): lắp, gắn vào vị trí
densely populated /ˈden.sli ˈpɑː.pjə.leɪ.t̬ɪd/ (adj): đông dân cư
ward /wɔːrd/ (n): phường (đơn vị hành chính)
coordinates /koʊˈɔːr.də.nət/ (n): tọa độ
route /ruːt/ (n): tuyến đường
proactively /ˌproʊˈæk.tɪv.li/ [C1] (adv): chủ động
a harsh reality /hɑːrʃ riˈæl.ə.t̬i/ (n): thực tế khắc nghiệt
endure sth /ɪnˈdʊr/ [C1] (v): chịu đựng
encounter sth /ɪnˈkaʊn.tɚ/ [B2] (v): gặp phải
resistance /rɪˈzɪs.təns/ (n): sự phản kháng, sức cản
landlord /ˈlænd.lɔːrd/ (n): chủ nhà
frown /fraʊn/ (v): cau mày
nomadic /noʊˈmæd.ɪk/ (adj): du mục, nay đây mai đó
drift /drɪft/ (v): vật vờ, trôi dạt
lobby /ˈlɑː.bi/ (n): sảnh
bench /bentʃ/ (n): ghế băng
unplug /ʌnˈplʌɡ/ (v): rút phích cắm
drain sb /dreɪn/ (v): làm kiệt sức ai đó
pharmaceutical sales representative /ˌfɑːr.məˈsuː.t̬ɪ.kəl seɪlz ˌrep.rɪˈzen.t̬ə.tɪv/ (n): trình dược viên
tension /ˈten.ʃən/ (n): sự căng thẳng
a ticking time bomb /ˈtɪk.ɪŋ taɪm bɑːm/ (n): mối nguy tiềm ẩn
three-phase power /θriː feɪz ˈpaʊ.ɚ/ (n): điện ba pha
fire hazards /ˈfaɪr ˈhæz.ɚdz/ (n): nguy cơ cháy nổ
ease sth /iːz/ (v): làm dịu, giảm bớt
informal /ɪnˈfɔːr.məl/ (adj): tự phát, không chính thức
sleep soundly /sliːp ˈsaʊnd.li/ (v): ngủ ngon
kick sb out /kɪk aʊt/ (v): đuổi ai ra ngoài
spontaneous /spɑːnˈteɪ.ni.əs/ [C1] (adj): tự phát
concentrated /ˈkɑːn.sən.treɪ.t̬ɪd/ (adj): tập trung, đậm đặc
claim /kleɪm/ (v): tuyên bố, khẳng định
lithium battery /ˈlɪθ.i.əm ˈbæt̬.ɚ.i/ (n): pin lithium
simultaneously /ˌsaɪ.məlˈteɪ.ni.əs.li/ [C1] (adv): đồng thời
confined space /kənˈfaɪnd speɪs/ (n): không gian kín
flammable /ˈflæm.ə.bəl/ (adj): dễ cháy
pose a risk /poʊz ə rɪsk/ (v): gây ra rủi ro
monitor /ˈmɑː.nə.t̬ɚ/ (v): giám sát
hurriedly /ˈhɝː.i.dli/ (adv): vội vã
rush out /rʌʃ aʊt/ (v): lao ra ngoài
merge into sth /mɝːdʒ ˈɪn.tuː/ (v): hòa vào
the flow of people /floʊ əv ˈpiː.pəl/ (n): dòng người
make a living /meɪk ə ˈlɪv.ɪŋ/ (v): kiếm sống
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