As a paradox, while numerous streets in Ho Chi Minh City become overloaded with increasing numbers of vehicles, many road expansion projects remain undeveloped, a Tuoi Tre investigation has found. Tan Ky Tan Quy Street is one of the southwest entrances of the city, linking National Highway 1A in Binh Tan District to Cong Hoa Street in Tan Binh District. The street is about 5 km long but only about 7 meters wide. Therefore, traffic jams usually occur almost every day at the intersections between it and other roads. Another overloaded street is Luy Ban Bich that runs through Districts 6 and 11 and Tan Phu District. It is a major route between Phu Lam roundabout and Ba Queo crossroads in Tan Phu. Site clearance has been completed and a water supply system has been installed for the street but its roadway has yet to be enlarged and lifted up as planned.

As the roadway is designed to be lifted up to a height of 20-40 cm from the current surface, many locals have raised the floors of their houses at the same elevation. However, since the roadway remains unchanged now, these residents have had to build ramps to connect the roadway to their houses’ floors. Residents on Nguyen Huu Canh and Ngo Tat To Street in Binh Thanh District are also longing for the streets to be upgraded and expanded so that they can get rid of chronic inundation and congestion that they have suffered in the past several years. Tran Trung Hau, deputy director of the management board of the HCMC Urban Upgrade Work Construction Investment Project, said that capital shortage has led to the delay of works that have been planned for Luy Ban Bich Street. The board has asked city authorities to earmark its budget for the project within this year, but this has yet to be carried out, Hau said. Similarly, the projects to upgrade and enlarge the Truong Chinh – Tan Ky Tan Quy – Cong Hoa and the Truong Chinh – Au Co intersections were submitted by the Urban Traffic Management Zone No. 1 to the People’s Committee nearly two years ago but they remain undeveloped so far. Many other major traffic projects are in the same situation.

 A section of Ung Van Khiem Street in Binh Thanh District. The right-of-way line of the street has been narrowed from 50 meters to 30 meters (Photo: Tuoi Tre)

According to the city Transport Department, authorities have allocated the 2012 construction budget to the department later than scheduled, affecting the progress of many projects. In total, HCMC People’s Committee announced the right-of-way lines for more than 1,700 streets in 1995 and 1999, but works to realize these lines have yet to be carried out.Unsuitable projects canceled According to the request by the city government, the people’s committees of districts have reviewed their plans on new streets and right-of-way lines. After the review, many district authorities have been asked to cancel a number of plans that fail to meet requirements on site clearance, compensation, and social-economic efficiency. Binh Thanh District authorities have reduced the width of the 12 proposed right-of-way lines, with some being cut from 12 meters to 8 meters, and others from 50 to 30 meters. The district also adjusted 10 projects for new streets. District 11 plans to cancel 12 street enlargement projects and correct the proposed right-of-way lines of 5 streets District 12 also expects to halt expansion projects for 21 streets and adjust 21 right-of-way lines.