Slow progress
The project "Program for Developing Type II Cities (green cities)" implemented in Thua Thien - Hue (now Hue City), was approved by the Prime Minister on March 10, 2016. The project has a total investment of 1,617.196 billion VND, and is implementing 54 sub-projects in 19 wards of Hue City, expected to contribute to upgrading urban infrastructure, reducing flooding, improving the living environment and promoting socio-economic development in Hue City. To date, 15 projects have been completed and put into use, but many packages are still being constructed halfway, behind schedule.
In which, the item of upgrading and expanding Vy Da bridge is in package No. 28 (HU-CW07). This package includes two main items: upgrading and expanding Vy Da bridge and building a 10m wide road connecting urban areas A and B of An Van Duong area, along with a bridge across the Nhu Y river.
The package is constructed by Hoa Binh Joint Stock Company 479, with a contract value of 109.51 billion VND, started on July 6, 2021. According to the design, Vy Da bridge after upgrading has a total bridge length of 169.7m including 5 beam spans, width of 30m. In which the old bridge section 14m wide is kept unchanged, and the two sides build 8m each to expand the bridge deck.
For the Vy Da bridge item alone, the construction and installation value is about 55.15 billion VND. The value of the implemented volume is estimated at 30 billion VND, of which 28.22 billion VND has been disbursed (data as of January 2026).
Sanctions against contractors
Records of Lao Dong Newspaper reporters at the construction site area in mid-March 2026 show that at many times the construction site is quite deserted, without workers and construction machinery. At some times, workers are working but the progress is quite slow, and the construction volume is insignificant.
The Project Management Board of the Program for Development of Grade II Cities (under the Department of Finance of Hue City) issued a decision to sanction the contractor constructing package No. 28 (HU-CW07) with a fine of more than 1.5 billion VND for violating the contract schedule. The contractor sanctioned is Hoa Binh Joint Stock Company 479.
The initial plan was that the bidding package must be completed in June 2024. However, due to continuous delays in construction progress, the investor has adjusted the implementation time many times. Up to now, after nearly 5 years of implementation, the construction volume has only reached about 67%. Many important items such as Vy Da bridge, Nhu Y river bridge and the road connecting area A - B of An Van Duong urban area have not been completed.
Mr. Ho Hoang (resident of Vy Da ward, Hue City) said that many people hope the project will be completed soon to reduce traffic congestion.
According to the investor's request, after being penalized, the contractor must re-commit to the construction progress. The bridge over the Nhu Y River must be completed in the first quarter of 2026; Vy Da bridge must be completed in the second quarter of 2026; the access roads and asphalt concrete paving must be completed in the first quarter of 2026.
However, to date, Vy Da bridge has not completed the spans; while the bridge over the Nhu Y River is designed with two separate units, serving two-way traffic between Zone A and Zone B of An Van Duong new urban area, with three lanes on each side.
Functional agencies of Hue City said that they will continue to closely monitor the construction progress, and at the same time request relevant units to focus on removing obstacles to ensure the project is completed soon and promote investment efficiency.
