$430 mln Can Tho-Hau Giang expressway project seeks approval

A VND9,993 billion ($430 million) expressway project, linking the two Mekong Delta provinces of Can Tho and Hau Giang, is proposed to commence in the fourth quarter of 2022.

My Thuan Project Management Board is awaiting the Ministry of Transport’s approval for its feasibility study on the 37.65-kilometer Can Tho-Hau Giang Expressway, one of the North-South Expressway eastern section projects in the 2021-2025 period.

The expressway’s main route, as proposed, begins at the intersection with the route connecting National Highway 91 and National Highway 1, part of the ring road in western Can Tho, in Cai Rang district, Can Tho city.

It ends at the intersection with National Highway 61B, which is the starting point of the Hau Giang-Ca Mau section project in Vi Thuy district, Hau Giang province.

Six kilometers and 37.05 kilometers of the route will run through Can Tho and Hau Giang, respectively. Its main section will have four lanes and a roadbed width of 24.75 meters.

Construction is expected to be finished in 2025, with the expressway coming into operation a year later.

Once complete, it will provide a trunk road with high traffic capacity and mobility to link Mekong Delta's key political and economic hubs, including Can Tho, Hau Giang, Bac Lieu, Kien Giang, and Ca Mau.

Along with the Ho Chi Minh City-Trung Luong-My Thuan-Can Tho Expressway, the project will create favorable conditions for highly efficient passenger and cargo transportation throughout the region, as well as new development motivation for Can Tho, Hau Giang, western Bac Lieu, and Kien Giang's Vinh Thuan district.

Can Tho, one of the five centrally-managed cities in Vietnam, is Mekong Delta's heart. It is home to eight industrial zones, of which six are in operation and two are under planning with a total 2,364 hectares.

Hau Giang is located 240 kilometers southwest of HCMC via Highway 1 and 40 kilometers northeast of Can Tho via new Highway 61B.