Concluding the 21st meeting of the State steering committee for national key projects in the transport sector, held on November 8, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh urged extra efforts to inaugurate the entire expressway linking the northern mountainous province of Cao Bang to the southernmost province of Ca Mau on December 19, according to a report from the Vietnam News Agency.
PM Chinh, who is head of the steering committee, asked all parties involved to strive hard to achieve the goal of putting 3,000 kilometres of expressways and approximately 1,700 kilometres of coastal roads into operation in 2025, thus creating momentum to welcome the 14th National Party Congress and meeting the travel needs of the people during New Year 2026 and the Lunar New Year Festival.
To date, the country has a total of 2,476 kilometres of expressways.
Reiterating the set goal, the Government leader requested the simultaneous ground-breaking and inauguration ceremonies of major projects on December 19, 2025.
Emphasising the need for stronger determination, greater efforts, and more decisive action, the PM tasked the Deputy Prime Ministers, as heads of the inspection teams, to continue monitoring, reviewing, and solving difficulties and obstacles related to key transport projects with substantial remaining workload in the northern mountainous region, such as Dong Dang – Tra Linh, Huu Nghi – Chi Lang, and Tuyen Quang – Ha Giang, to ensure their completion in 2025.
The Ministry of Construction was requested to monitor and urge localities to focus on implementing the coastal road system, and promptly report to the PM on matters beyond their authority to ensure that approximately 1,700 kilometres are completed nationwide by the end of 2025.
Regarding Phase 1 of the Long Thanh International Airport project, the PM noted that this is a project of extremely important significance. However, with only about two months left and a huge pending workload, there is a risk of not completing it as required.
Therefore, ministries, agencies, managing units, and investors must urgently implement suitable solutions to significantly increase on-site construction progress, aiming for over 20% completion per month, while strictly controlling quality and labour safety, he stressed.
While accelerating project progress is important, it must not compromise quality, environmental hygiene, or labour safety in accordance with regulations, he emphasised, noting that speed should not lead to cutting procedures, shortening technological processes, using substandard materials, or causing environmental and workplace hazards.
Mentioning severe damage caused by recent storms and floods, PM Chinh acknowledged that climate change, unusual weather conditions, and historically heavy rains have significantly affected infrastructure works, bridges, and livelihoods of the people. Therefore, agencies must promptly update the latest data to implement timely design solutions and all projects must enhance resilience against flooding and sea-level rise, align with the landscape and environment, guarantee structural sustainability, and adapt to climate change, he noted.
The government leader urged the Ministry of Construction and localities to synchronously implement smart traffic and toll systems to meet the requirements of modern and safe operations, and simultaneously generate funds to continue investing in new projects and completing expressway networks.
The Ministry of Construction was requested to accelerate the project approval and ground-breaking for the expansion of the Ho Chi Minh City – Trung Luong – My Thuan expressway in the fourth quarter of 2025, while Ho Chi Minh City and Lam Dong province were asked to speed up the selection of investors and contractors, as well as related procedures, to commence the Ho Chi Minh City – Moc Bai and Tan Phu – Bao Loc expressway projects in Q4 2025.
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