HCM CITY Officials have been told by the Ministry of Transport to finish land clearance for the ongoing Bến Lức-Long Thành Expressway project, which has been delayed because of several problems.

Nguyễn Ngọc Đông, deputy minister of Transport, said the Bến Lức-Long Thành Expressway (connecting Long An Province to Đồng Nai Province) was lagging behind schedule due to difficulties in land clearance compensation in HCM City and Đồng Nai Province.

For example, HCM City’s Bình Chánh has around 26 households that have not handed over their land, some of which have been caused by unresolved disputes. These families account for 2 per cent of the affected households.

In addition, the plan for relocation of electricity pylons has not been completed.

A part of the Bến Lức – Long Thành Expressway project. Its investor will work with Đồng Nai Province and HCM City to ensure that land clearance is completed in June so the expressway can be finished in 2020. – VNA Photo Hoàng Hải

Meanwhile, in Đồng Nai, around 116 households have not handed over their land due to compensation procedures.

Nguyễn Ngọc Đông told the Việt Nam Expressway Corporation, the project investor, to work with Đồng Nai and HCM City to push for completion of land clearance and relocation of affected households so that land can be handed over to the company in June.

According to the investor, if the city hands over the remaining land needed for the project soon, around 20km of the project (from Bến Lức to Nhà Bè District’s Nguyễn Văn Tạo intersection) could open for traffic in September, while the remaining part leading to Đồng Nai could be completed in 2020.

However, if the land is not handed over in June, the project will not be finished by the end of 2020, as requested by the Ministry of Transport.

Begun in 2014, the VNĐ31 trillion (US$1.3 billion) project, which is 57.7km long, traverses Long An, HCM City and Đồng Nai. It is expected to reduce traffic congestion between the Mekong Delta and southeastern Việt Nam.

The project was originally planned to be finished in 2018, but it was delayed until 2020. Around 70 per cent has been completed. VNS