Elevated highway proposed to ease traffic pressure at Tan Son Nhat airport An elevated highway connected to Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City is expected to begin construction at the end of the year, with capital investment estimated at VND2.6 trillion (US$114.3 million).   A map showing the elevated highway (in blue) connected to the Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City. Tuoi Tre The project will be executed under a PPP (public private partnership) and is among five other project planned by the city to construct elevated highways in an effort to curb traffic congestion. A public-private partnership is a government service or private business venture funded and operated through a partnership of government and one or more private sector companies. The construction of the elevated road leading to Tan Son Nhat was proposed by the 319 Corporation, which is managed by the Ministry of National Defense, Dong Mekong Company Ltd, and Dong A Infrastructure JSC. The structure will be 3,240 meters long at completion, starting at the T2 international terminal of Tan Son Nhat Airport, passing T1 domestic terminal, then running along Thang Long and Phan Thuc Duyen Streets, passing over Hoang Van Thu Park, and splitting into two branches before landing on Hoang Van Thu and Nguyen Van Troi Streets. According to Hoang Dinh, project director from Dong A Infrastructure JSC, the highway will create a convenient and fast way for vehicles to exit the airport. Along with other projects to expand and upgrade the facility, the construction of an elevated highway will help solve congestion at the entrance of the facility and improve the level of service to passengers, Dinh said. The road can also be linked to Elevated Highway No.1, an under-utilized project which leads to the city’s center, the director continued.   The road splits into two branches before landing on Nguyen Van Troi and Hoang Van Thu Streets. Nguyen Van Tam, deputy director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport, said that the agency had been tasked with evaluating and gathering feedback for the scheme before submitting a report to the Municipal People’s Committee. Regarding funding for the project, the three developers estimated costs to be in the vicinity of VND2.6 trillion (US$114.3 million), of which VND450 billion ($19.8 million) will be provided by the local state budget for land clearance. The project is considered an attractive investment proposition for commercial banks, while its financial plan also includes regular maintenance in order to achieve continuous service upon its completion. According to Dinh, implementing the construction under a PPP contract is necessary and suitable in the current economic climate, in which funds from the city’s coffers are limited. The director also asserted that the design of the highway will take into account urban aesthetics and the architecture of the airport. The area of land required to be cleared, about 50,600 square meters, will only impact a few buildings and a small portion of Hoang Van Thu Park, he elaborated. The project’s developers and relevant agencies are currently expediting procedures for the construction to be approved in the third quarter of 2017. Work is expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2017 and the elevated road is scheduled to be put into operation by early 2019. TUOI TRE NEWS