A map shows three national key expressways passing through seven provinces in the Central Highlands, the central coast, the south-east and the Mekong Delta regions. — Photo www.baogiaothong.vn

HCM CITY — The Government has approved a number of special mechanisms and policies to implement three key national expressway projects, with a total investment of VNĐ84.4 trillion (US$3.6 billion).

The offer aims to speed up the implementation progress of these projects so they can be completed soon.

Accordingly, investment policy, appraisal and approval required for the entire project or component projects will be decided by the Minister of Transport and the head of the people’s committee where the project is located.

The appointment of contractors for consulting and construction bidding related to component projects, including technical infrastructure relocation, site clearance, compensation and resettlement, will be announced in 2022 and 2023.

The Ministry of Transport and the people’s committees in relevant localities are tasked to simultaneously implement the works related to compensation, resettlement support, identifying dumping sites for construction waste during the projects’ preparation period and cutting down the time to implement investment-related procedures.

Companies mining sand and gravel on rivers in the Mekong Delta, and in Đồng Nai and Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu provinces are allowed to increase by no more than 50 per cent of their mining capacity, and do not require administrative procedures for permission.

Contractors of the projects are allowed to exploit construction materials to serve the projects without completing the required administrative procedures.

The Khánh Hòa-Buôn Ma Thuột Expressway will have a length of 117.5km with four lanes, passing through the Central Highlands province of Đắk Lắk and the central-coastal province of Khánh Hòa.

The expressway's cost of VNĐ21.9 trillion ($933.3 million) is divided into three component projects.

An area of 938 hectares needs to be cleared, affecting 771 local households. It is expected to be basically completed in 2026 and officially open to traffic in 2027.

The 53.7km-long Biên Hòa-Vũng Tàu Expressway will run through the south-eastern provinces of Đồng Nai and Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu.

With an investment cost of VNĐ17.8 trillion ($758.5 million), the expressway will have 4-6 lanes in the first phase and 6-8 lanes in the second phase.

It needs an area of 519ha and about 3,130 households must relocate.

It will be carried out under three component projects and is scheduled to be completed by 2025 and open to traffic in 2026.

The Châu Đốc-Cần Thơ-Sóc Trăng Expressway will be 188.2km long with 4-6 lanes, running through Cần Thơ city and the provinces of An Giang, Hậu Giang and Sóc Trăng in the Cửu Long (MeKong) Delta.

The project will cost around VNĐ44.7 trillion ($1.9 billion), including four component projects.

It will implement site clearance of 519ha and relocate nearly 1,200 households, ensuring it can be completed in 2026 and open to traffic in 2027.

According to the Ministry of Transport, the investment in building these expressways aims to meet increasing transportation demand, improve regional connectivity, solve traffic infrastructure bottlenecks in the southern key economic region, and exploit the advantages of the Central Highlands, the central coast, the south-east and the Mekong Delta regions. — VNS