Traffic congestion on the HCM City – Long Thành – Dầu Giây Expressway. — Photo tuoitre.vn |
HCM CITY — More toll collection lanes and limited access to expressways during the Tết holiday are expected to reduce traffic congestion on the HCM City – Trung Lương and HCM City – Long Thành – Dầu Giây expressways.
The Việt Nam Expressway Services Engineering (VECE) said the HCM City – Long Thành – Dầu Giây Expressway is expected to serve an average volume of 50,479 vehicles per day this year, and up to 64,940 vehicles per day during peak hours during Tết.
Traffic hotspots include the intersection of Ring Road No 2 in District 9; Long Thành Bridge which links HCM City with Đồng Nai Province; Long Phước and Dầu Giây toll stations and toll station No 51; and the intersection at National Highway No 51 and HCM City – Long Thành – Dầu Giây Expressway.
If congestion occurs on Ring Road 2, drivers should go straight to the An Phú intersection, authorities have recommended.
If traffic congestion extends over 500m at Long Phước and Dầu Giây toll stations, VECE will divert traffic flows to An Phú, Ring Road 2, National Highway No 51 and Dầu Giây intersections, avoiding the expressway.
Ngô Bá Thắng, director of the Yên Khánh company’s branch office, which manages the HCM City–Trung Lương Expressway, said the volume of traffic on the expressway would increase up to 45,000 vehicles per day during Tết against 35,000 vehicles, mostly cars, on normal days.
He said two additional toll collection lanes that use both cash and pre-paid cards have been opened on the expressway, while more toll booths that collect cash only have opened as well.
If accidents occur, authorities should direct traffic off the expressway and toward National Highway 1, Thắng said.
Gridlock
Last Sunday, tens of thousands of vehicles from HCM City heading to provinces in the Cửu Long (Mekong) Delta crowded National Highway 1A and many other roads.
Rạch Miễu Bridge’s Toll Station saw 17,000 vehicles per day, up more than 3,000 vehicles compared to normal days.
According to the transport sector’s forecast, National Highway 1A will be busy until February 15 (December 30 on the lunar calendar) from HCM City to the Mekong Delta region.
Traffic jams often occur in specific spots such as sections and intersections on National Highway 1A, National Highway No 50, HCM City-Trung Lương Expressway, as well as Rạch Miễu and Mỹ Thuận bridges and many small bridges. — VNS