Key road projects ready soon

News - Pivotal road and bridge projects in HCM City's gateway to the north will be ready for use late this week, helping ease the serious traffic congestion there, said HCM City vice chair Nguyen Thanh Tai.

He told a meeting on Monday that container trucks travelling on Hanoi Highway and Interprovincial Road 25B will be able to use the just-finished overpasses at Cat Lai Intersection. Meanwhile, the repair of Binh Trieu 1 Bridge will be completed on August 25, 15 days earlier than scheduled.

Vuong Hoang Thanh, deputy director of the HCM City East-West Highway and Water Environment Management Unit, said the unit had basically completed the overpasses, thus reducing traffic jams triggered by container trucks coming in and out of Cat Lai Port in District 2.

The city government has also agreed to request Japanese contractor Obayashi to put the structures into use soon. Obayashi earlier this month declined to open the overpasses to traffic sooner than expected while Hanoi Highway and Road 25B are increasingly congested.

According to the Department of Transport, the congestion was caused by an upsurge in the number of trucks going to the port after the government extended the deadline for container truck drivers to upgrade their driving licenses to FC status. Furthermore, traffic has risen sharply on Hanoi Highway as access to Binh Trieu 1 Bridge is restricted due to the ongoing repair work.