HCMC – The Government has urged the Ministry of Transport to consider proposals to develop the second phase of the HCMC-Trung Luong and Trung Luong-My Thuan expressways.
Deo Ca Group as the probable investor and the governments of HCMC, Long An and Tien Giang provinces have earlier sought approval from the Prime Minister to expand the two expressways to meet the rising traffic demand.
The two projects will be implemented independently to ensure investment efficiency, according to the Directorate for Roads of Vietnam.
The second phase of the HCMC-Trung Luong expressway has an estimated investment of VND8,200 billion and is to be developed under the build-transfer-lease contract.
Meanwhile, Phase 2 of the Trung Luong-My Thuan expressway, which will cost roughly VND9,500 billion, is proposed as a build-operate-transfer contract. The entire route will have six lanes and two emergency lanes, instead of four traffic lanes and no emergency lanes like now.
The proposed approach will help improve the expressways’ operating efficiency, particularly once the HCMC-Trung Luong and the Ben Luc-Long Thanh expressways are connected in 2023.
Traffic flow on the HCMC-Trung Luong expressway reaches an average of 51,000 vehicles per day, causing operational challenges, including the illegal usage of emergency lanes by autos and traffic congestion, according to the directorate.
Meanwhile, the route’s transit capacity remains low, with vehicles traveling at an average speed of 60-70 kilometers per hour as compared to the route’s planned 120 kilometers per hour.
As of August 3, the Trung Luong-My Thuan expressway had been used by nearly 2.2 million vehicles after three months of toll-free operation.
Peak vehicle traffic might reach 30,000 per day, according to the expressway’s operator, the Trung Luong-My Thuan BOT JSC.
The HCMC-Trung Luong and Trung Luong-My Thuan expressways are essential routes of the Mekong Delta, helping ease pressure on National Highway 1 and promote regional socio-economic development.
