With Long Thanh Airport about to open, how complete are the connecting roads?

As Long Thanh Airport prepares for the inauguration of phase 1, a series of key transportation routes are being accelerated to ensure comprehensive and synchronized operation.

In just a few days, Long Thanh International Airport will enter its initial operational phase, expected to become the largest air gateway in the country. Alongside the completion of the terminal and runway, connecting transportation routes are also being accelerated by ministries, departments, and local authorities to ensure smooth access from the moment the airport opens.

Many key transportation routes are being constructed at an accelerated pace to ensure infrastructure is synchronized with the operational launch of Long Thanh Airport.

Two direct routes to the airport are accelerating towards completion.

On December 19th, the day Long Thanh Airport welcomed its first flight, it also marked the technical opening of lines T1 and T2, part of component project 3, with a total investment of over 2,600 billion VND. These are the two most important ground gateways in the initial operational phase.

Route T1, spanning 4.3 km, directly connects the western side of the airport to the Bien Hoa – Vung Tau Expressway, National Highway 51, and Provincial Road 25C. The roadbed, surface, and median strip landscaping are largely complete; major interchanges are nearing completion. The section connecting Provincial Road 25C and the overpass over the Bien Hoa – Vung Tau Expressway is currently in its final stages of completion.

In early December, construction on two key routes directly connecting to Long Thanh Airport accelerated, nearing completion.

The 3.5 km long T2 line, connecting from T1 to the Ho Chi Minh City – Long Thanh – Dau Giay expressway, is designed to meet the 100 km/h expressway standard. The branch leading to the Ho Chi Minh City – Long Thanh – Dau Giay expressway has been largely completed, while the group of overpasses leading to the Bien Hoa – Vung Tau expressway is under accelerated construction to ensure timely technical opening to traffic.

However, the greatest traffic pressure is currently concentrated on National Highway 51 – the route through which most vehicles from Ba Ria – Vung Tau pass to access the airport via Terminal 1. This road has been overloaded for many years, with many sections in disrepair. Dong Nai province has approved an emergency repair plan, expected to begin this month, prioritizing the repair of approximately 17 km of severely damaged sections to be completed before Tet 2026, with the remainder to be implemented in 2026.

The expressway serves as the "backbone" connecting Ho Chi Minh City and Long Thanh.

Within the group of connecting routes, the expressways and ring roads are considered the "backbone," responsible for carrying the majority of traffic from Ho Chi Minh City to Long Thanh Airport. This group includes the Ho Chi Minh City – Long Thanh – Dau Giay Expressway, the Bien Hoa – Vung Tau Expressway, Ring Road 2, and Ring Road 3.

The Ho Chi Minh City - Long Thanh - Dau Giay expressway is being expanded from 4 lanes to 8-10 lanes.

Currently, the Ho Chi Minh City - Long Thanh expressway is almost the only access route for people in Ho Chi Minh City to Long Thanh airport, frequently causing traffic congestion at the An Phu interchange. Therefore, the expressway upgrade project is classified as a Group A project, implemented as an emergency project, expanding the scale from 4 lanes to 8-10 lanes and constructing a new Long Thanh bridge to alleviate traffic congestion on the existing bridge.

The project, with VEC as the investor, has a total investment of over 16,300 billion VND (6,500 billion VND from the state budget and 9,800 billion VND mobilized by VEC). According to the plan, the expressway will be basically completed by the end of 2026; the new Long Thanh bridge will be joined in December 2026 and fully completed in the first quarter of 2027.

The Bien Hoa - Vung Tau expressway section passing through Ho Chi Minh City is basically complete and ready to connect with Long Thanh airport.

The Bien Hoa - Vung Tau expressway project, spanning over 53 km and with a total investment of 17,800 billion VND, passes through Dong Nai province and Ho Chi Minh City. The section through Dong Nai, over 34 km long, is divided into two sub-projects, with Project Management Board 85 and the Dong Nai Provincial Project Management Board acting as the investors.

Specifically, component project 3, which is 19.5 km long and runs through Ho Chi Minh City (formerly within the territory of Ba Ria - Vung Tau), has been open for technical traffic since April and is expected to be fully operational in December 2025.

When completed in conjunction with the Ho Chi Minh City – Long Thanh – Dau Giay expressway, the two expressways will form a complete connecting axis from Ho Chi Minh City to Long Thanh, opening a direct connection between the airport and the Cai Mep – Thi Vai port cluster. This is an important foundation for Long Thanh to develop into a regional aviation and seaport logistics center.

Ben Luc Expressway - the "gateway" from the Mekong Delta to Long Thanh Airport.

The Ben Luc - Long Thanh expressway, nearly 58 km long and with a total investment of approximately 31,320 billion VND, plays a particularly important connecting role for the Mekong Delta, allowing people from Tay Ninh, Vinh Long, Can Tho , etc., to travel directly to Long Thanh airport without having to go through the center of Ho Chi Minh City.

Currently, the project has reached over 90% completion; approximately 30 km have been put into operation, including the western section (from the Ho Chi Minh City – Trung Luong Expressway to Nguyen Van Tao) and the eastern section (from Phuoc An to National Highway 51). The remaining section is expected to be put into operation in the third quarter of 2026.

The Ben Luc – Long Thanh expressway only has one final "bottleneck" left at Binh Khanh Bridge and Phuoc Khanh Bridge before the entire route is completed.

This expressway connects directly to the Bien Hoa – Vung Tau expressway at the intersection with National Highway 51, where an overpass is currently under construction to ensure smooth traffic flow. Combined with Ring Road 3, this connecting axis forms an East-West inter-regional network, significantly shortening travel time from the West to the East and to Long Thanh Airport.

Route 25C, Cat Lai Bridge and Cat Lai Ferry: the "eastern gateway" to the airport.

The connecting group, comprising Road 25C, Cat Lai Bridge, and Ring Road 3, is considered the eastern access route to Long Thanh Airport, allowing residents of Thu Duc, Thu Thiem, and Cat Lai areas to travel directly to the airport without needing to use the Ho Chi Minh City – Long Thanh Expressway.

The Cat Lai Bridge is a key infrastructure component of this axis, spanning 11.6 km (including a 3 km main bridge), with 8 lanes, a design speed of 80 km/h, and a total investment of over 20,000 billion VND. The project is expected to commence in late 2025 and be completed in 2028.

The Cat Lai ferry is a "river crossing" route connecting to Long Thanh airport.

Road 25C, spanning 2.15 km, connects National Highway 51 to Provincial Road 19, with a total investment of 647 billion VND, including the reinforced concrete Ba Ky Bridge. Upon completion, this route will significantly shorten travel time from Ho Chi Minh City and surrounding provinces to Long Thanh Airport.

While awaiting the construction of the Cat Lai Bridge, the third approach still relies on the Cat Lai ferry, combined with Ring Road 2 and radial routes in Ho Chi Minh City. However, the Cat Lai ferry is frequently overloaded during peak hours, making it difficult to meet the demands of air passenger transport, which requires punctuality and stability.

National Highway 51, Provincial Road 25B, and Ring Road 3

The fourth connection route is via Provincial Road 25B (currently being expanded), combining with National Highway 51 and Ring Road 3. The upgrade project for Provincial Road 25B is over 9.2 km long, with a total investment of nearly 1,500 billion VND, and is expected to be operational in 2026.

This route is expected to alleviate congestion on National Highway 51, divert traffic from Ho Chi Minh City, Nhon Trach, and Dong Nai to the airport, while also providing impetus for the development of satellite urban areas in southern Dong Nai.

After more than two years of construction, the Ring Road 3 project in Dong Nai province is accelerating towards completion, ready for full traffic opening before December 19, 2025.

The biggest limitation currently is that National Highway 51 is frequently congested, especially at the interchanges with the expressway and the area near the airport. With the existing traffic volume, even with the expansion of Road 25B, the speed of connection to Long Thanh still depends significantly on the ability of National Highway 51 to alleviate congestion.

Thu Thiem – Long Thanh urban railway

The Thu Thiem – Long Thanh light rail line is 42 km long, comprising 20 stations, with a total investment of approximately US$3.4 billion and a design speed of 120 km/h. The line can transport passengers from Thu Thiem to Long Thanh Airport in just 20–25 minutes, running along the Ho Chi Minh City – Long Thanh – Dau Giay expressway and Ring Road 3.

With the capacity to serve tens of thousands of passengers per hour, this railway line is considered a "key" to relieving pressure on the road system, while ensuring sustainable transportation connectivity with the airport.

The Thu Thiem – Long Thanh light rail line is expected to reduce travel time to 20–25 minutes. In the photo: Metro Line 1 (Ben Thanh – Suoi Tien).

The routes connecting to Long Thanh Airport are forming a multi-layered network – from expressways and ring roads to urban rail. This is the foundation for Long Thanh Airport not only to replace Tan Son Nhat, but also to become a regional logistics hub.

Luong Y

Source: https://vtcnews.vn/san-bay-long-thanh-sap-khanh-thanh-cac-tuyen-duong-ket-noi-hoan-thien-toi-dau-ar991828.html