VietNamNet Bridge – HCM City will focus on easing traffic jams in the two worst affected areas before year-end -- roads leading to Tan Son Nhat International Airport and Cat Lai Port -- an official has said.

Traffic jams often block main roads leading to Tan Son Nhat Airport in HCM City. — VNA/VNS Photo

Director of the city Department of Transport, Bui Xuan Cuong, said many solutions are planned to unclog the roads leading up to the airport in Tan Binh District.

They include two metro lines and the elevated railway line No.1 along Cong Hoa Street connecting the airport area, he said.   

But the immediate requirement is for two fly-overs at the airport, he said.

One Y-shaped flyover would be built at the airport to allow vehicles to travel to the international and domestic terminals, and plans for it are ready, he said.

The other would be built at Pham Van Dong Street - Nguyen Kiem Street to connect to the airport, he said.

The city is awaiting Government approval for choosing the contractor for it, and construction is expected to be finished by year end, he said.  

The airport handles 30 million passengers a year, higher than its designed capacity of 25 million.

Traffic jams often occur in the surrounding streets on Friday afternoons.

At the Cat Lai Port in District 2, traffic jams frequently occur between 6pm and 11 pm.

Cuong said the congestion would worsen this year since the number of vehicles going in and out of the port is increasing.

The volume of goods handled at the port in the first half of the year increased by 11 per cent year-on-year. It handles 43 million tonnes a year while its capacity is only 36 million tonnes.

The city has 10 infrastructure projects lined up for the port area, including the new Binh Loi Bridge, Cuong said.

The new bridge is expected to be finished in 12 months’ time.

By then all goods from Binh Duong and Tay Ninh provinces will be transported to the port by barges and not road like now.

A task force has been established to deal with traffic congestion near Cat Lai Port in District 2.

Members of the team will work in the area to regulate traffic and submit daily reports on the traffic situation near the port.

Accident-prone spots

The city had 18 spots with a large number of traffic accidents as of the end of June, two more than a year earlier, according to the department.

They include the intersection of Truong Chinh and Pham Van Dong streets in Tan Binh, the Thu Duc fly-over system in Thu Duc District and My Thuy flyover system in District 2 and the An Suong Crossroads in District 12.

At the An Suong Crossroads, there were eight accidents in the first six months of the year that left nine people dead.

The city also has plans to mitigate the danger faced by motorists at these spots.

At the An Suong Crossroads, for instance, more traffic lights have been installed and roads widened. A tunnel is planned to be built.

Tran Quang Thang, head of the HCM City Institute of Economics and Management, said besides infrastructure and technology, people’s awareness and adherence to traffic rules, like driving in the right lanes and not driving on pavements or speeding, are also reasons for certain spots becoming dangerous.

Awareness of traffic rules should be improved, he said.

VNS