On March 12, Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Nguyen Van Duoc had a tour of the An Phu intersection construction site - one of the areas with the most complicated traffic situation in the city.
This project has a total investment of more than VND 3,400 billion, designed with three floors of traffic to reduce congestion and increase connectivity.
The project includes the 760m long HC1 underpass, 4 lanes wide, connecting the Ho Chi Minh City - Long Thanh - Dau Giay expressway with Mai Chi Tho street; the 480 m long HC2 underpass, 4 lanes at the Mai Chi Tho - Dong Van Cong intersection.
Above, the intersection has 4 overpasses for vehicles to turn in different directions; the ground will have a central roundabout with a symbolic tower.
As for the Mai Chi Tho - Dong Van Cong intersection, in addition to the underpass extended through here, two overpasses have also been built connecting these routes together.
In addition, Giong Ong To Bridge on Dong Van Cong Street and Ba Dat Bridge on the expressway access road have also been expanded with 2-3 branches to increase traffic capacity.
According to Mr. Luong Minh Phuc - Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Traffic Construction Investment Project Management Board, after more than two years of implementation, the project has reached 65% progress.
Of which, Ba Dat Bridge and Giong Ong To Bridge have been 90% completed, and are undergoing asphalt concrete paving.
The HC1 underpass branch (from the expressway to Mai Chi Tho) has reached 80% of the volume. The remaining items such as pumping stations and closed tunnels are being urgently deployed to open to traffic before April 30.
After being put into use, the HC1 tunnel will help vehicles move conveniently from the Ho Chi Minh City - Long Thanh - Dau Giay Expressway to the Saigon River tunnel, significantly reducing traffic pressure at the eastern gateway of the city.
It is expected that the entire An Phu intersection will be completed by the end of 2025.
However, there are still some problems related to site clearance, especially at the N1.2 branch (from Luong Dinh Cua Street to the expressway).
The area to be cleared has an area of 22,012 m2, belonging to the An Phu Development Urban Area project (invested by Thu Thiem Real Estate Joint Stock Company). This is also the area of the Luong Dinh Cua road expansion project, a project that has been stalled for 10 years due to similar land problems.
To solve this difficulty, Mr. Luong Minh Phuc proposed two options. One is to add the compensation and site clearance for the Luong Dinh Cua road project to the An Phu intersection project, using the surplus capital of about 1,500 billion VND.
The second is to separate into an independent project, assigning Thu Duc City to preside over the implementation first, then the relevant units will complete and pay the costs.
In addition, to speed up the progress, the plan to reduce the reclaimed area to 12,000 m2 is also being considered, helping to reduce the total investment by about 1,000 billion VND.
After the actual survey and listening to reports from relevant units, Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Nguyen Van Duoc emphasized the importance of An Phu intersection for the city's transportation system and the entire southern region.
In the immediate future, units need to focus on implementing items that have been cleared, except for the road branch and overpass from the expressway connecting Luong Dinh Cua Street. The city will have a specific plan to remove obstacles related to Thu Thiem Real Estate Joint Stock Company" - Mr. Nguyen Van Duoc said.
