A US$170 million urban transport development project is due to kick-off next year, a senior official from the Urban Transport Project Management Unit has revealed.

Unit director Do Duc Huan said the project is aimed at developing urban transport facilities, strengthening management of public transport, and helping the sustainable development of the city’s economy and society.

The project comprises three major components. The first component with an investment of $30-$40 million aims to raise the capacity of the bus system, build two experimental Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) routes, develop bus maintenance facilities, and implement modern ticket systems.

The second component will be the construction of a 6km section of Ring Road 2 from Cau Giay to Nhat Tan and a 3.4km section of Ring Road 3 from Hoang Quoc Viet to the Nam Thang Long industrial park. The total cost for this component is estimated at between $100 and $110 million.

About $10-$15 million will be spent on the project’s third component to strengthen management of the policy-making agencies, build up institutional management of public transport, provide technical support for planning and develop an environmental monitoring system.

The project is expected to be completed in 2010.

In addition to funding from the city’s budget, the World Bank has helped the city win non-refundable aid of $998,000 from Japan Policy and Human Resources Development Fund and $350,000 from the Global Environment Fund, Huan said.

Source: Vietnam News
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