Thousands of new trees line Hanoi street as city shoots for a million

By Ba Do, Hung Thap August 29, 2017 | 08:35 pm PT

A sea of green awaits after you touch down at Noi Bai airport.

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Vo Nguyen Giap Street was opened in January 2015, stretching 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) from Nhat Tan Bridge to Noi Bai International Airport.

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The VND6.7 trillion ($295 million) road is one of Hanoi's main arteries from the airport to downtown Hanoi.

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The road has six lanes for cars with a speed limit of 80 kilometers per hour. It also has outer lanes for motorbikes and non-motorized vehicles with a speed limit of 40 kilometers per hour.

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It has taken two years to finish planting the trees on the road's central reservation.

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Five different species have been planted to give the road a tropical flavor.

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Colorful ornamental plants arranged in a star shape are surrounded by mango and palm trees, with orchids and camphor trees interplanted along many sections.

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The project is part of Hanoi's plan to plant a million trees between 2016 and 2020, according to Vu Kien Trung, general director of the Hanoi Green Tree Park Company.

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More than 2,500 camphor trees, 1,000 orchid trees and thousands of date palm trees are thriving along the road.

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Date palm trees are easy to care for as they grow slowly, have thick, strong roots and are rarely attacked by pests and diseases, according to experts.