HCM City plans to build 1 million sq. metres of new roads this year to ease traffic congestion, the Department of Transport said.

This would take the density of roads in the city to 1.816km of roads per square kilometre.

To achieve the target, the city would seek to raise funds from local and foreign investors through public-private partnership (PPP), build-operate-transfer (BOT), build-transfer-operate, and build-transfer (BT) models.

This year private investors would begin work on nine major transport projects in the city at a cost of VND34 trillion (US$1.6 billion) and US$171 million.

The HCM City Infrastructure Investment Joint Stock Company would expand the Ha Noi Highway, build the Rach Chiec Bridge, the inter-provincial Highway 25B, and the second phase of the Binh Trieu Bridge.

It would also start work on the Sai Gon Bridge No. 2 in April under a BT model at a cost of more than VND1.2 trillion.

Work on the Thu Thiem Bridge No. 2 – linking the Thu Thiem urban area and the planned Thu Thiem new urban area – would be begun this year at a cost of VND1.6 trillion.

In July work would begin on the Thu Thiem new urban area with the construction of four major roads.

The section of the Belt Road No. 2 between An Lap Traffic Point and Nguyen Van Linh Street would also be built this year at a cost of VND9.5 trillion.

PetroVietnam Infrastructure and Urban Investment Joint Stock Company, the belt road investor, is finalising the design and paperwork under the BT model.

Auto registration fees

The HCM City Department of Transport has petitioned the People's Council to raise registration fees for cars with fewer than 10 seats to 20 per cent of the price of the vehicle from the current 15 per cent.

It wants the fee hike to take effect in July and sees it as a measure to improve the worsening traffic situation.

Le Toan, deputy director of the department, said emergency measures were needed to achieve the target of reducing accidents and traffic jams by 10 per cent this year.

The department has also sought approval for its proposal to collect fees on cars entering the city's inner areas.

Last year the number of newly-registered private vehicles grew by 637,000, or 13 per cent, to 5.6 million, including 500,000 automobiles, Toan told a meeting held on Thursday.

The city's groaning traffic system also includes around one million motorbikes and cars and 60,000 trucks travelling from other cities and provinces every day, according to Toan.

Last year the department upgraded and built 1.34 million squ.m of roads, an increase of a mere 0.3 per cent.

More than 110 areas have been identified as highly prone to traffic jams.

Source: VNS