HCM CITY — HCM City plans to begin construction of 48 new traffic projects and complete 19 congestion projects in the last six months of the year, according to the city’s Department of Transport.

At the meeting on Thursday about traffic solutions, the department said key projects to control the traffic flow in the city’s northwestern gateway had kicked off.

Construction is expected to ease traffic around the airport. Flyovers at the Trường Sơn-Tân Sơn Nhất-Bình Lợi-Outer Ring Road and the Nguyễn Thái Sơn-Nguyễn Kiệm intersection will open next month.

Construction of a double tunnel under An Sương Intersection and a parallel road along Mai Chí Thọ Street are ongoing and on schedule.

Bùi Xuân Cường, director of the department, said the city had previously speed up major traffic projects, including two ramps at Nguyễn Văn Cừ Bridge and work at the Mỹ Thủy and An Sương intersection and at Nhị Thiên Đường Bridge.

The two ramps at Nguyễn Văn Cừ Bridge opened on June 29, five months ahead of schedule.

Trần Quang Lâm, deputy director of the department, said the city would begin many projects in the last six months, including a parallel road along National No 1 Highway, Tân Kiên Intersection, Bưng Bridge, and the Nguyễn Oanh-Phạm Ngũ Lão branch of a Y-shaped flyover at the Gò Vấp intersection.

The city will also upgrade and expand a 1.65km section of National No 50 and Phan Văn Trị Street, as well as repair of Lê Đức Thọ Street.

The department’s traffic inspection officials said they had handled more than 9,880 violations of traffic rules on roads and waterways, and had imposed administrative fines of nearly VNĐ28 billion (US$1.3 million) since the beginning of the year.

Of the figure, there were more than 1,770 violations in the trade and transport of goods with total fines of VNĐ17.7billion ($785,000).

They also identified illegal bus stops, particularly in areas surrounding the Western, Eastern and An Sương coach stations. — VNS