Ho Chi Minh City has the intention to construct a 17km sea-crossing bridge linking it with a neighboring region for tourism purposes.

The administration in the southern metropolis’ island district of Can Gio stated at a meeting on Saturday it is trying to lay the groundwork for a proposal to build the modern bridge, which is planned to connect the area to the tip of Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province.

This is an addition to the presently operating speedboats plying between the locations.

Its top leader, Le Minh Dung, said the project is a step toward transforming the district, believed to have as-yet-untapped huge tourism potential, into a tourist attraction with resorts and entertainment facilities that meet regional and international standards.

The district with a vast UNESCO-recognized mangrove biosphere reserve is expected to develop various forms of tourism integrated with the local ecology, agriculture and historic sites.

In an effort to realize the ambition, it also wants to create a route for helicopter traffic to Tan Son Nhat International Airport near downtown, over 20 kilometers away, as access to the island from the inner city has been by ferry so far.

Can Gio, where 1,053 families live below the poverty line, still relies heavily on an aquafarming that has witnessed no breakthrough since the area was merged with Ho Chi Minh City four decades ago, when it was a war-torn expanse of land.

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