Expressway target of 3,000 km by 2025 feasible: Prime Minister

Work on new expressways is getting underway, and with the current network of 1,729 kilometers, Vietnam is likely to reach its goal of over 3,000 kilometers of expressways by 2025, said Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on Sunday.

At a ceremony to kick off construction on Ho Chi Minh City's Ring Road 3, Bien Hoa-Vung Tau Expressway, and Khanh Hoa-Buon Ma Thuot Expressway, the cabinet leader said in the 2000-2021 period, the country invested and opened 1,163 kilometers of expressways.

“To have 5,000 kilometers of expressways by 2030 as targeted, we must build four times more than in the previous 20 years,” he noted.

Since 2021, Vietnam has built an additional 566 kilometers of expressways, bringing its total to 1,729 km, he said, adding that another 1,756 kilometers are under construction.

According to the PM, the three above routes, with a total length of 247 kilometers, will help link key economic regions in the South and Central Highlands regions.

Ring Road 3 will run 90 kilometers through HCMC, Binh Duong, Dong Nai and Long An provinces, and is expected to cost VND75.4 trillion ($3.2 billion).

It will have six lanes and a speed limit of 80-100 km per hour, and two others for emergency stops. The first phase will stretch 76 kilometers with four lanes.

An overpass will be built to link the ring road with the HCMC-Long Thanh-Dau Giay Expressway, which connects with the Dau Giay-Phan Thiet Expressway running from Dong Nai to the beach town of Phan Thiet.

The project will also link with four other expressways, including HCMC-Trung Luong that connects HCMC with the Mekong Delta; Ben Luc-Long Thanh, linking Long An and Dong Nai; HCMC-Moc Bai, connecting the city with the Cambodian border; and HCMC-Chon Thanh, linking HCMC and Binh Duong.

Once completed in 2026, the route is expected to open up space for the development of industrial corridors, connect seaport clusters, and reduce travel times and logistics costs. It will also drive the development of the key southern region.

Meanwhile, the first phase of the Bien Hoa-Vung Tau Expressway will run 53.7 kilometers from Dong Nai to Ba Ria-Vung Tau with a total cost of over VND17.8 trillion ($756.48 million).

The first phase of the Khanh Hoa-Buon Ma Thuot Expressway, linking Khanh Hoa province and Dak Lak in the Central Highlands, will stretch 117.5 kilometers with funding of nearly VND21.9 trillion ($930.7 million).

The expressways are expected to be put into use in 2026 and 2027, respectively.

Earlier on Saturday, the PM kicked off construction of the 188km Chau Doc-Can Tho-Soc Trang Expressway. Crossing the Mekong Delta region, the expressway begins in Soc Trang province’s Tran De port, runs through Hau Giang province and Can Tho city, and ends in An Giang province’s Chau Doc town.

It is designed to be 32.25 meters wide and have six lanes, with the total cost exceeding VND44.69 trillion ($1.89 billion) sourced from central and local budgets.

Once operational in 2027, the project will contribute to completing the regional transport network, connecting Mekong Delta localities with Cambodia and other Southeast Asian countries.