HCM City (VNS/VNA) - New highways in the Mekong Delta region havemet transport demand, but have failed to meet the socio-economicpotential of the area, experts have said.

The HCMCity-Trung Luong Expressway and Co Chien, Nam Can, My Loi, and Rach Soibridges have been built, while highways 1, 91, 53, 54, 61 and others havebeen upgraded, contributing to regional development.

In AnGiang province alone, 18 roads link the province’s administrative centrewith roads in districts and neighbouring provinces. In addition, there arealso now 4,260km of roads in the province’s rural areas. The provincehas 301 waterways and My Thoi and Binh Long ports which serve 10,000-tonneto 3,000-tonne boats.

However, NguyenViet Tri, Director of An Giang's Department of Transport, said that theprovince has not been able to have a "breakthrough" in economicdevelopment because the Soc Trang-Can Tho-Chau Doc expressway between theprovince and Phnom Penh in Cambodia still has not been built.

Inaddition, 30-tonne trucks cannot travel on a road that leads to Tinh BienInternational Border Gate in the province because many roads,including Highway No. 91, that connect to this road are in poorcondition.

Trucks ofmore than 20 tonnes cannot travel on Highway No. 91C and Street No. 957because of dense traffic and must go to border gates Long Binhand Vinh Hoi Dong in the province.

Accordingto research conducted by experts at the state-owned TransportEngineering Design Inc in the South, construction ofthe region's eastern expressways has been completed, but only 39.8 ofplanned 282km is open to traffic.

Roadsalong the N1 and N2 highways have also not been completed because capitalhas not been allocated for these sections.

Waterways

Theregion has 12 ports and 35 wharves. The ports operate as satellite portsfor HCM City and Cai Mep-Thi Vai ports in Ba Ria-Vung Tau province.

Waterways,such as the Cho Gao Canal, which leads to Hau River, and others have beenupgraded, but operation efficiency has not been high.

Le Do Muoi,Deputy Director of the Transport Development & Strategy Institute, saidthe key waterway from HCM City to Mekong Delta provinces has to gothrough Cho Gao Canal, but it is still not wide enough for the increasingnumber of boats. The logistics system there, however, is near completion.

Manyenterprises have not taken advantage of the waterways totransport their goods.

Chu VanAn, Deputy General Director of Minh Phu Seafood Corporation, said that ittakes 30 hours to go to HCM City via waterway and that costs for transportare higher than road transport.

As aresult, his company uses road transport to HCM City before exporting itsgoods to other countries, he added.

Theconnection between roads and waterways is limited, affecting transportation inthe region, while connections in the entire region and with HCM Cityhave not improved.

Under theGovernment's plan, six expressways with a total length of 365.6km willlink HCM City and the Mekong Delta region. But only three of the expresswayshave received investment for the first phases.

HCM Cityhas six- to- eight-lane Ring Roads 3 and 4 with a total length of nearly287km that connect with the Mekong Delta region. However, only afew sections of the two roads have received investment.

Dr DuongNhu Hung of HCM City University of Technology under Vietnam NationalUniversity-HCM City said the entire southern region should have “aconductor” to regulate and manage co-operation in transport infrastructureand the economy.

More investment

Tri of AnGiang province said the province is calling for investmentin many transport projects. Most of the state capital so far hasbeen allocated for roads from HCM City to Ca Mau province, he said.

Accordingto the An Giang People’s Committee, the province does not have enoughcapital to contribute to transport infrastructure projects under public-privatepartnerships.

Muoi ofthe Transport Development & Strategy Institute suggested that the Governmentshould allocate enough capital for transport infrastructureconnecting HCM City to the region.

NguyenThien Nhan, Secretary of the HCM City Party Committee, said the investmentfrom the Government’s budget did not correspond with the city andregion’s economic development.

Totalinvestment should be raised to nearly 35 percent in the next 10 years,including more funds from the state budget and private sector, Nhan said.

Revenuethat HCM City contributes to the State budget should also be used fortransport development in the region and the city.

“The citysubmits 80 percent of its revenues to the State budget each year. Twenty percentof this should be allocated for development in the next 10 years,” Nhansaid./.