On March 26, the Office of the People's Committee of Quang Tri province said that it had just signed a decision to establish an inter-sectoral working group to inspect and assess the safety conditions of the Trieu Do civil pontoon bridge, thereby creating a basis for considering allowing the project to resume operation after a temporary suspension period.
Accordingly, Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Phan Phong Phu signed a document establishing an inspection team including representatives of the Department of Construction, Provincial Police, Nam Dong Ha Ward People's Committee, Trieu Binh Commune People's Committee and Quang Tri Inland Waterway Management Section. The team is headed by leaders of the Department of Construction.
According to requirements, units must send leaders to participate immediately on March 26. The delegation will conduct a current status inspection, make a record, make specific conclusions and request the project owner to overcome existing problems (if any). Only when safety conditions are fully met according to regulations, the pontoon bridge will be considered for permission to resume operation. The inspection results must be reported to the Provincial People's Committee before March 30.
The Provincial People's Committee also assigned the Trieu Binh Commune People's Committee to manage the operation of pontoon bridges; assigned the Department of Construction to review current legal regulations, advise on the promulgation of management regulations for civil pontoon bridges to avoid confusion in the coming time.
This move is expected to remove the obstacles that have existed for a long time, causing Trieu Do pontoon bridge to temporarily suspend operations from March 16 due to expiring the license but not being re-issued.
Previously, as Lao Dong Newspaper reported, the bridge suspension has greatly affected the lives of people in Trieu Binh commune and surrounding areas. Every day, about 1,000 people pass through the bridge, mainly farmers, students and workers. When the bridge "closes", people are forced to go around Dai Loc bridge, about 10km further, increasing travel time and costs.
Not only entangled in procedures, the restoration of bridge operation is also difficult due to the lack of consensus on how to determine the type of project. The Department of Construction believes that Trieu Do pontoon bridge is a "floating raft" type, so it is not subject to inspection, while Trieu Binh Commune People's Committee believes that this is a fully scaled traffic project that needs to be managed in a stricter direction.
This difference in understanding, along with the fact that old regulations have been abolished but there are no new guidelines, has created a legal gap that prolongs licensing.
Trieu Do pontoon bridge was formed from 2002–2003 by people contributing capital to build, spanning the Thach Han River, connecting Trieu Binh commune with Nam Dong Ha ward. For many years, this has been an important traffic route serving travel, transportation of goods and supporting students and local people.
The establishment of this inspection team is considered a specific step to soon restore the bridge to operation, meeting the urgent travel needs of people, and ensuring safety conditions according to regulations.
