Stone Paved Sidewalks in Hanoi 'No Major Damage Recorded'

According to the Department of Construction, most of the renovated streets have not recorded major damage, only a few localized spots have appeared.

The Hanoi Department of Construction has just reported on quality management, labor safety, and environmental sanitation during the construction of summer renovation and beautification projects in Hanoi in 2023.

After inspecting 9 sidewalk-paved streets belonging to 5 projects in Cau Giay and Dong Da districts, the Department said that the projects were implemented in accordance with the approved objectives, scale and total investment. The project contributed to overcoming the loss of urban aesthetics, ensuring traffic order and safety and raising people's awareness of hygiene.

During the inspection, the Department did not detect any major damage, only a few small, local cracks. The reason was due to improper management and use, the restoration of underground works did not meet requirements, and maintenance work was not timely. Currently, the districts reported that they have completed the repairs.

The sidewalk of Giang Vo street (going to the center) in Dong Da district is being paved with natural stone. Photo: Ngoc Thanh — The sidewalk of Giang Vo street (going to the center) in Dong Da district is being paved with natural stone. Photo: *Ngoc Thanh*

The Department of Construction also pointed out some shortcomings in paving sidewalks similar to the report this unit submitted to the city in April. That is, the inspection, supervision, and acceptance of input materials in some projects did not comply with regulations such as: lack of factory certificates for paving materials; some material acceptance records did not show the quantity of acceptance as required by the contract.

In addition, the organization of the construction site is spread out, unscientific , and does not ensure environmental hygiene, causing loss of urban aesthetics, affecting traffic and people's daily life. Investors and contractors have not proactively handled problems arising during the construction process; the coordination in handling the design according to the actual status of the project (construction at some locations of tree roots, electric poles, and electrical cabinets) has not ensured technical and aesthetic standards.

From 2016 to now, at the end of each year, many sidewalks in districts have been dug up to pave with natural stone that can be used for 50 - 70 years, according to the city's policy. The first street was Le Trong Tan, then Nguyen Trai (Thanh Xuan district), Hai Ba Trung (Hoan Kiem district), Giai Phong (Hoang Mai district). After only a few months, the stone pavement was peeling and broken. City leaders directed to stop the investment preparation project to review and clarify the responsibilities of the relevant parties.

The February 2018 inspection conclusion pointed out some shortcomings in the design of samples and types of stones used in concrete pavement; lack of general guidance on construction process; some stone samples did not meet the design requirements.

In early 2019, the city issued a decision to design urban sidewalk models in the area. After that, 15 districts, towns and cities proposed paving sidewalks for nearly 300 streets. To date, about 270 streets have been paved with natural stone, concentrated in Ba Dinh, Hoan Kiem, Dong Da, Hai Ba Trung, Cau Giay and Tay Ho districts.

Vo Hai

Source link