The design of Cần Giờ Bridge. Photo the HCM City Department of Planning and Architecture

HCM CITY — The HCM City Department of Transport has called on the People’s Committee to speed up procedures for 15 critical transport projects so that they could be started soon.

Trần Quang Lâm, director of the department, said they have been identified as pressing projects that need to be prioritised for capital allocation and preparation since they would boost socio-economic development in the city and its neighbouring provinces and connectivity between them.

The 15 have a combined cost of nearly VNĐ96.1 trillion (US$4.13 billion), with VNĐ32.18 trillion ($1.38 billion) coming from public funds and the remaining from public-private partnerships and other sources of investment.

The projects include the Cần Giờ Bridge and Thủ Thiêm Bridge No.4, widening of national highways Nos.1 and 13, a flyover from the Cộng Hòa intersection to Ngô Tất Tố Street and another from the Thủ Đức intersection to the An Sương Intersection.

The department will co-ordinate with provinces in the southern key economic region to petition the Ministry of Transport to speed up work on projects that will impact regional connectivity, like ring roads Nos.3 and 4, Cát Lái Bridge and widening of the HCM City- Long Thành- Dầu Giây Expressway.

Lê Hòa Bình, deputy chairman of the city People’s Committee, instructed the department to set out detailed goals and specific road maps for the works in the next five years, with a focus on developing urban transport, ring roads and regional linkages. —VNS