Vinh – Thanh Thuy Expressway: Strategic route for Nghe An development

Vinh – Thanh Thuy Expressway: International Gateway

The Vinh – Thanh Thuy expressway project is about 65 km long, starting from Hung Tay intersection (the starting point is Km0 intersection with the North-South expressway, East section, Dien Chau – Bai Vot, at Hung Tay intersection, Hung Nguyen district, the end point is at the Thanh Thuy – Nam On border gate area, Vietnam-Laos border).

This route will shorten the distance from the border gate to urban areas and seaports of Nghe An province, contributing to strengthening regional and international connectivity.

Vinh - Thanh Thuy expressway route. Source: Ministry of Construction

The expressway is part of the Hanoi - Vientiane route, which was agreed upon by the two governments of Vietnam and Laos in 2016 and reconfirmed by the Lao side in 2018. According to Decision No. 1454/QD-TTg dated September 1, 2021 of the Prime Minister approving the Road Network Planning for the period 2021-2030, with a vision to 2050, the project to invest in the construction of a complete expressway. The route has a scale of 6 lanes. Phase 1 will invest in 4 complete lanes, large bridges will be built with a scale of 6 lanes, the design speed is 100-120 km/h, the difficult terrain section is designed at 60-80 km/h, the roadbed width of the section with a design speed of 100-120 km/h is 32.25m, the section with a design speed of 60-80 km/h is 29m.

In the immediate future, phase 1 investment will be completed with a scale of 4 complete lanes (Bn = 22 -24.75m) and bridges on the route with a scale of 6 complete lanes (Bn = 29 -32.25m). The total investment is about 21,846 billion VND (of which, compensation and site clearance costs are 2,847 billion VND, construction costs are 14,992 billion VND.

On May 16, 2025, the People's Committee of Nghe An province has just sent an official dispatch to the Ministry of Construction regarding the investment in the construction of the Vinh-Thanh Thuy expressway, in which the proposed investment form is public investment. The capital source for investment preparation is from the increased revenue of the central budget in 2024 (according to the opinion of the Ministry of Finance in Official Dispatch No. 4713/BTC-DT dated April 11, 2025. The capital source for project implementation is from the medium-term public investment plan for the period 2026-2030 and the local budget allocates a maximum of 50% of the project's site clearance costs.

In the immediate future, Nghe An proposes to allocate 100 billion VND from the central budget for the project in 2025.

Advantages of investing in Vinh - Thanh Thuy expressway

The investment in the construction of the Vinh – Thanh Thuy expressway will facilitate the transportation of goods, reduce logistics costs, attract investment and promote the socio-economic development of Nghe An province. In particular, it will contribute to the development of industrial parks, economic zones and supporting industries.

The expressway will shorten travel time between localities, creating favorable conditions for tourism and service development. Famous tourist destinations in Nghe An such as Cua Lo beach, Kim Lien relic site, Pu Mat National Park, and tea island will be more easily accessible to domestic and foreign tourists.

The Vinh – Thanh Thuy Expressway will create a closely linked transport network between the North Central provinces and neighboring countries, especially Laos and Thailand. This will open up opportunities for economic, trade and investment cooperation between localities, contributing to promoting regional economic development. Investment in the construction of the expressway will make an important contribution to achieving this goal, creating favorable conditions for expanding urban space, developing infrastructure and attracting investment.

The Vinh – Thanh Thuy Expressway plays a key role in connecting Vietnam with Laos, shortening the time for transporting goods and passengers between the two countries. This route contributes to promoting trade, investment and tourism in the region, especially between North Central Vietnam and Central Laos. In addition, the expressway also creates economic development momentum for localities along the route, opening up many opportunities for cross-border cooperation.

The investment in the construction of the Vinh - Thanh Thuy expressway is a strategic step, opening up comprehensive development opportunities for Nghe An province and the North Central region. This is not only a key transport project but also a strategic link in promoting the socio-economic development of the province, strongly connecting Vietnam with Laos, in which Nghe An is the gateway. However, to maximize the benefits of this project, there needs to be close coordination between authorities at all levels, businesses and people in implementing, managing and effectively exploiting transport infrastructure.

At the same time, it is necessary to pay attention to environmental protection, ensuring traffic safety and sustainable development of indigenous natural areas.

It is known that the total area of the highway occupies about 582.17 hectares, including 98.48 hectares of upstream protection forest, 141 hectares of production forest land, 221.2 hectares of rice land, 30.87 hectares of residential land, 69.18 hectares of tree land, and other land: 19.4 hectares.