HCMC – The Government is weighing a public-private partnership (PPP) to develop an expressway connecting the south-central coastal city of Nha Trang and the Central Highlands city of Dalat, aiming to boost regional connectivity and support growing transport demand.
Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha has assigned the Ministry of Finance to study funding options for the project, which would be implemented under a build-operate-transfer (BOT) contract in the 2026–2030 period, reported the Government news website (baochinhphu.vn).
The Ministry of Finance will coordinate with the Ministry of Construction and Khanh Hoa and Lam Dong provinces to propose state budget allocations for the project under the country’s medium-term public investment plan.
The two provinces will also be responsible for submitting a formal report to the PM, recommending which locality should act as the project’s main investor.
Currently, National Highway 27C is the only road connecting Nha Trang and Dalat. It includes the 30-kilometer-long Khanh Le Pass, which has challenging terrain and is not suitable for heavy-duty vehicles. The road is also vulnerable to landslides and frequent traffic accidents.
The highway has a maximum capacity of 10,000 passenger car units (PCUs). However, traffic is projected to reach 10,900 PCUs by 2030, exceeding its design limits.
Authorities say the expressway is needed to meet rising demand for cargo transport and to improve connectivity between the two tourism hubs.
The proposed expressway would be 80.8 kilometers long, starting from the eastern North-South Expressway in Dien Khanh District, Khanh Hoa Province, and ending at Darahoa junction in Dalat, Lam Dong Province.
It would have four lanes and a design speed of 80 to 100 kilometers per hour. Travel time between the two cities would be cut to 1.5 to 2 hours from the current 3.5 to 4 hours.
The project has a preliminary investment cost of VND25.06 trillion and would include state capital contributions.
The expressway is expected to support tourism, facilitate goods movement, and form an east-west corridor connecting the Central Highlands with the south-central coast.
