Expressways in the making to shorten HCMC – Mekong Delta commute

Built over the next five years, one will connect with an existing national highway and the other with an expressway, said Tran Tri Quang, deputy chairman of Dong Thap.

My An – Cao Lanh Expressway will run 26 kilometers (16 miles) from an intersection with Highway N2, part of Vietnam's north-south highway, to Cao Lanh Bridge that crosses the Tien River, a branch of the Mekong, to connect Dong Thap's Lap Vo District and Cao Lanh Town.

As approved by the government, the expressway will cost VND5 trillion ($216 million), with investment coming from South Korean official development assistance.

Cao Lanh Bridge that will link to the My An – Cao Lanh Expressway in Dong Thap Province. Photo by VnExpress/Hoang Nam.

The other expressway, An Huu – Cao Lanh, will span 28 kilometers to connect with HCMC – Trung Luong – My Thuan Expressway, currently the only expressway between HCMC and the Mekong Delta.

An Huu – Cao Lanh has been proposed at VND5.7 trillion.

The Ministry of Transport has listed it among public projects for the 2021-2025 period and is waiting for the parliament to approve the investment plan.

With the two expressways open to traffic, the commute between HCMC and Dong Thap Province would be cut from four hours to just two.

According to provincial authorities, the two projects do not only serve Dong Thap but also other Mekong Delta localities, like Kien Giang, An Giang and Can Tho by allowing for alternatives to National Highway 1A.

For now, highways 1A and 50 are the only routes that connect HCMC with the entire Mekong Delta, home to Can Tho and 12 provinces with over 17 million residents.

The delta is one of Vietnam's most important economic zones, contributing 17.7 percent of the entire nation's GDP.

In 2019, the region contributed 54 percent of rice, 70 percent of seafood and 60 percent of fruit output for the whole country.

Lawmakers and officials have been saying the lack of infrastructural connectivity between Ho Chi Minh City and numerous Mekong Delta provinces was proving a development bottleneck for the region.