Work starts on first trans-Mekong Delta expressway

By Ngoc Tai June 17, 2023 | 04:29 am PT

Vehicles begin construction of the Chau Doc - Can Tho - Soc Trang expressway section in An Giang Province. Photo by VNA

Work was started Saturday on the 188-km Chau Doc - Can Tho - Soc Trang expressway that will run across the Mekong Delta at a cost of over VND44.69 trillion (US$1.89 billion).

The expressway will begin in Soc Trang Province's Tran De port, run through Hau Giang Province and Can Tho City, and end in An Giang Province’s Chau Doc City. It is designed to be 17 m wide with four lanes in the first phase, allowing speed of 80 kph. The expressway will then be expanded into six lands and more than 32 m wide.

With budget sourced from the central and local budgets, the entire project is expected to complete in 2027.

The route of the new Chau Doc - Can Tho - Soc Trang Expressway. Graphics by VnExpress/Thanh Huyen

Addressing the ceremony, Prime Minister Pham Minh said the expressway is the first to run on the horizontal axis in the Mekong Delta, connecting the region with the national expressway system.

He said the project will be part of a regional network connecting Vietnam's Mekong Delta with Cambodia and other Southeast Asian countries.

The project is one of six expressways stretching a total of 1,188 km eyed for the Mekong Delta by 2050, to boost connection between the country's agriculture hub with HCMC and other economic centers.

Around 90 km of expressways is in use or under construction in the delta.