6 stalled bridge and road projects cause traffic jams throughout the East of Ho Chi Minh City

Beltway 2, expansion of National Highway 13, An Phu intersection, upgrading Luong Dinh Cua street, Tang Long bridge... are a series of delayed bridge and road projects causing traffic jams to surround the East of Ho Chi Minh City.

The project to expand National Highway 13 (from Binh Trieu Bridge to Binh Phuoc Intersection, Thu Duc City) is nearly 6km long, formed more than 20 years ago under the BOT (build - operate - transfer) model. The project has not been implemented yet but has been stopped because the law does not allow BOT projects on existing roads.

In 2023, Resolution 98 of the National Assembly on piloting a number of specific mechanisms and policies for the development of Ho Chi Minh City allows the city to invest in BOT projects to upgrade and expand existing roads.

Thanks to that, in September 2023, the Ho Chi Minh City People's Council approved the investment policy to expand National Highway 13 under the BOT form with a scale of expansion to 53-60m, with a total capital of about 13,851 billion VND (land clearance accounts for about 9,375 billion).

Many traffic projects in the eastern part of Ho Chi Minh City have been stalled, causing residents to suffer from constant traffic jams. Photo: Nguyen Hue

Ho Chi Minh City Beltway 2 (from Go Dua Bridge intersection to Pham Van Dong Street) started construction in 2017 and is expected to be completed in 3 years with a length of 2.75km and an investment capital of more than VND 2,700 billion in the form of BT (build - transfer).

However, the project was stalled and construction was suspended since March 2020 due to difficulties in site compensation and land fund payment to investors.

At the end of January 2024, the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee decided to extend the completion time to 2026. But so far, the construction site has shown no signs of restarting.

Ho Chi Minh City's Ring Road 2 section from Go Dua Bridge to Pham Van Dong Street is under construction. Photo: TK

My Thuy intersection is an important connection point on the Dong Van Cong - Vo Chi Cong - Nguyen Thi Dinh axis. This is the gateway to Cat Lai port with the largest cargo volume in the country, so it is often seriously congested.

This project, with a budget of more than 3,600 billion VND, started in 2016 to reduce traffic congestion. Phase 1 of the project has completed major items such as the underpass, overpass and Ky Ha 3 bridge. However, due to incomplete land clearance, many remaining items are stalled.

In April this year, Ky Ha 4 Bridge was started along with the branch lines at My Thuy intersection. However, site clearance continues to face difficulties, affecting the construction progress.

Recently, Vice Chairman of Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Bui Xuan Cuong directed Thu Duc City to speed up progress and hand over the site.

Ho Chi Minh City leaders requested early handover of the land related to the abutments and pillars of Cat Lai overpass and Ky Ha 4 bridge abutments before November 15; handover of the entire cleared land before December 31.

Panorama of My Thuy intersection. Photo: TK

The Tang Long Bridge project on La Xuan Oai Street was implemented to replace the old, degraded bridge. The new bridge started construction in 2017 with an initial investment of VND450 billion.

By the end of 2022, the project's total capital was adjusted to increase to more than 688 billion VND and resumed construction in October 2023.

It is expected that by December, the left branch of Tang Long Bridge will be completed and open to traffic, and then construction of the right branch will continue. By December 2025, the entire new bridge will be completed.

The project to upgrade and expand Luong Dinh Cua Street , nearly 2.5km long, started in 2015 with a total investment of more than 800 billion VND, and is expected to be completed after 2 years.

This is the main axis connecting to the An Phu intersection project. However, nearly 10 years have passed, the project is still unfinished due to land clearance problems.

An Phu traffic intersection is implementing a project to build a 3-storey underpass and overpass with an investment of more than 3,400 billion VND. Photo: Nguyen Hue

An Phu intersection is one of the key projects to reduce the load for the East of Ho Chi Minh City, with a total investment of more than 3,400 billion VND.

However, the project completion plan has been delayed from April 30, 2025 to the end of 2025 due to land issues. Currently, the total volume after nearly 2 years of construction has reached about 50%.

Every day, the number of cars passing through this area is estimated at 22,000, including many container trucks, tankers, dump trucks... going to Cat Lai port and the Ho Chi Minh City - Long Thanh - Dau Giay highway. This place often sees traffic moving one meter after another during rush hour.

The water coconut leaf-shaped pedestrian bridge connecting the two banks of the Saigon River is a key project.

The pedestrian bridge across the Saigon River connecting District 1 with Thu Duc City, costing 1,000 billion VND and designed in the shape of a water coconut leaf, will be a key project of Ho Chi Minh City.

November started the Xuyen Tam canal renovation project worth over 17,000 billion VND

The project to dredge, improve the environment, and build infrastructure for Xuyen Tam canal in Ho Chi Minh City with a budget of more than 17,000 billion VND will start the first package next November.

Ho Chi Minh City will unilaterally terminate the BOT contract for the 1,500 billion VND project to build 2.7km of road.

The project to build a road connecting Vo Van Kiet Avenue to Ho Chi Minh City - Trung Luong Expressway, about 2.7km long, under a BOT contract, with a budget of more than 1,500 billion VND, has been stalled for 6 years now.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/6-du-an-cau-duong-dinh-tre-lam-ket-xe-bua-vay-khu-dong-tphcm-2338014.html