HCMC plans $652-million elevated road to ease traffic congestion

By VnExpress December 8, 2016 | 06:50 am PT

It will serve as the backbone for a series of highways in the sky.

Ho Chi Minh City’s municipal government is seeking permission from the central government to build an elevated road to help reduce traffic congestion.

Road Number 1 will run for 9.5km with total investment of about VND15 trillion ($652 million), local media reported on Thursday.

The four-lane road is expected to begin at Lang Cha Ca Roundabout in Tan Binh District near Tan Son Nhat International Airport and end at Phu An Bridge in Binh Thanh District.

It will serve as the backbone for a future elevated road system.

It will also act as a link from the downtown to belt roads around the city, alleviating the rising transport pressure on the country’s economic hub.

Ho Chi Minh City also has plans to build four other elevated roads with a combined length of more than 70km.

Construction of the city's first metro line linking Ben Thanh Market and Suoi Tien Theme Park started in December 2013 in District 9.

Plans for more metro lines are underway.

Part of the under-construction Ben Thanh - Suoi Tien Metro Line. Photo by VnExpress

> Saigon's first metro line in the making: a closer look