Determined to open up the gateway to Tan Son Nhat Airport.

TP - On June 21st, Ho Chi Minh City restarted construction of the Tan Ky-Tan Quy bridge project (Binh Tan district) after being suspended for over 5 years. This is one of the efforts to open up the gateway to Tan Son Nhat airport.

The Tan Ky Tan Quy bridge project has recently resumed construction. Photo: HH

Ho Chi Minh City aims to complete projects such as the Tan Ky - Tan Quy bridge and road, the expansion of Hoang Hoa Tham road, and the construction of a road connecting Tran Quoc Hoan and Cong Hoa roads (Tan Binh district) by the end of this year…

Removing obstacles to "stalled" projects

The Tan Ky-Tan Quy bridge and road are located at the northwestern gateway of Ho Chi Minh City, playing a crucial role in connecting the districts of Hoc Mon, Tan Binh, Tan Phu, and Binh Tan with the inner city and Tan Son Nhat airport. In early 2018, the Tan Ky-Tan Quy bridge project (Binh Tan district), spanning the Tham Luong-Ben Cat canal, commenced under a BOT (build-operate-transfer) contract with a total investment of over 312 billion VND, later increased to 668 billion VND due to interest payments during construction and the waiting period for toll collection to recover the investment.

Initially, the project was expected to be completed by the end of 2018 and would recoup its investment after more than 9 years of toll collection through the An Suong - An Lac BOT toll station on National Highway 1 (approximately 500 meters from the bridge). By December 2018, when about 70% of the work had been completed, construction had to be temporarily halted due to land acquisition issues.

In August 2019, the State Audit Office concluded that including the Tan Ky - Tan Quy bridge in the An Suong - An Lac BOT project, when the structure was not located on National Highway 1 (part of this BOT project), was inappropriate. Furthermore, the Tan Ky - Tan Quy bridge project was also inconsistent with Resolution No. 437 of the National Assembly (BOT projects only apply to newly constructed roads, while the Tan Ky - Tan Quy bridge project was built on an existing road).

Given that the BOT project was no longer feasible, in late September 2022, the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee decided to halt and terminate the implementation of the Tan Ky - Tan Quy bridge construction project under the BOT contract model, switching to public investment. At the end of 2022, the Ho Chi Minh City People's Council approved the use of over 491 billion VND to complete the Tan Ky - Tan Quy bridge.

Accordingly, Ho Chi Minh City will spend approximately 230 billion VND to reimburse the investor for the costs incurred in building the bridge and about 261 billion VND to complete the remaining items. After being "suspended" for more than 5 years, on June 21, the Tan Ky-Tan Quy bridge project officially resumed construction.

Mr. Luong Minh Phuc, Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Investment and Construction Project Management Board for Transportation Works (Transportation Board, the investor), said that the project will be constructed in about 6 months and completed on December 31, 2024. After opening to traffic, the Tan Ky-Tan Quy bridge, along with the Tan Ky-Tan Quy road which is currently being upgraded and expanded (expected to be completed in October), will form a transportation axis connecting National Highway 1 to the city center and Tan Son Nhat International Airport.

"The commencement of the project is the result of the city's departments and agencies, along with the inter-agency working group implementing the BOT contract for the An Suong - An Lac - National Highway 1 section, focusing on resolving difficulties and obstacles, and completing negotiations to terminate the previous BOT contract with the investor."

"Alongside that, we are carrying out land clearance, relocation, and the reconstruction of technical infrastructure facilities, as well as the process of implementing investment procedures through public investment," Mr. Phuc said.

Mr. Vu Chi Kien, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Binh Tan District, said that the Tan Ky - Tan Quy bridge project is one of the city's key projects monitored and directed by the working group of the Standing Committee of the City Party Committee. "Binh Tan District has aggressively implemented land acquisition and clearance work and accelerated the land acquisition process to expedite the project," Mr. Kien said.

Over the past period, the district has successfully persuaded 43 households whose houses and land are affected by the project to agree to the project's plan and hand over the land. Currently, 97.6% of households have agreed to hand over the land. For those who have not yet agreed, the district is continuing its efforts to persuade them.

According to Mr. Bui Xuan Cuong, Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, the Tan Ky-Tan Quy bridge, once completed and put into operation, will develop transportation infrastructure, improve urban planning, and, together with the Tham Luong - Ben Cat canal project, will help with drainage, wastewater treatment, and environmental improvement. This is also the first project to apply a new approach, shifting from a public-private partnership (PPP) model to public investment.

To commence the project, the city's transportation sector overcame numerous procedural and legal difficulties to complete the procedures for converting the investment model from BOT to public in accordance with the law.

“I suggest that the investor and contractor expedite the project's progress and bring it into operation as soon as possible. At the same time, surrounding projects should also accelerate their completion to quickly finalize and synchronize the transportation network and urban development in the western area, facilitating convenient connections with Terminal 3 of Tan Son Nhat Airport,” Mr. Cuong said.

“Along with the Tan Ky-Tan Quy bridge, the completion and commissioning of a series of projects serving the city's residents by the end of this year, including the expansion of Tan Ky-Tan Quy road, the expansion of Hoang Hoa Tham road, and the construction of a road connecting Tran Quoc Hoan road and Cong Hoa road… will contribute to reducing traffic congestion, completing the transportation network, and enhancing transportation connectivity in the area.”

Mr. Luong Minh Phuc, Director of the Project Management Board

Investing in the construction of transportation infrastructure in Ho Chi Minh City.

Reaching the goal this year

Currently, in addition to the bridge construction and road expansion project on Tan Ky-Tan Quy Street, Ho Chi Minh City is also implementing projects to improve access to Tan Son Nhat Airport.

According to observations by Tien Phong newspaper reporters on the afternoon of June 21st, dozens of workers along with equipment and machinery were busy constructing the underpass at the Tran Quoc Hoan - Phan Thuc Duyet intersection (Tan Binh district). This project is part of the Tran Quoc Hoan - Cong Hoa connecting road project (connecting Terminal 3 - Tan Son Nhat Airport), approximately 4km long with 6 lanes, which Ho Chi Minh City started construction on at the end of 2022 with a total capital of over 4,800 billion VND.

Once completed, this new route will directly connect to Terminal 3 (currently under construction), thereby breaking the monopoly of Truong Son Road for access to and from Tan Son Nhat Airport.

Mr. Luong Minh Phuc stated that the Tran Quoc Hoan - Phan Thuc Duyet underpass project is currently over 80% complete and is expected to be finished in August. The entire project is currently over 50% complete and is expected to be finished by the end of this year.

Mr. Phuc stated that this is one of the city's key transportation projects; therefore, since the beginning of the year, the investor has organized the signing of emulation agreements to accelerate progress, "working 3 shifts and 4 teams" and maintaining construction throughout holidays and Tet (Lunar New Year) to ensure the project's progress.

Besides the Tran Quoc Hoan - Cong Hoa road connection, the project to expand Hoang Hoa Tham road (the section from the military barracks gate adjacent to the airport to Cong Hoa road), with an investment of nearly 300 billion VND, is currently preparing the ground for construction. Upon completion, this approximately 800m section will be widened from 8-10m to 22m.

According to the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport, after expansion, this road will connect the two main Cộng Hòa roads with the Trần Quốc Hoàn - Cộng Hòa connecting road, making it more convenient for vehicles to access Terminal 3 of Tan Son Nhat Airport. The investor aims to complete the expansion of this road section by the end of this year.

Huu Huy

Source: https://tienphong.vn/quyet-khoi-thong-cua-ngo-san-bay-tan-son-nhat-post1648377.tpo