Located in District 2, the bustling Cat Lai Port receives more than half of Vietnam’s waterway freight, placing the surrounding infrastructure under enormous pressure and creating frequent traffic congestion in the area.

The new road, which will run 1.5 kilometers from the port to Belt Road 2 in the same district, will include four vehicle lanes, with a completion date set for 2019.

However, the new road to the port is only one of many solutions being sought by authorities.

Thousands of trailer trucks lining up to access weigh stations has been the leading cause of the daily traffic snarls seen at the My Thuy intersection, where the Dong Van Cong and Vo Chi Cong roads meet.

Drivers have placed the blame on a truck ban between 6:00 am and 10:00 pm on Nguyen Duy Trinh Street, which connects to the Cat Lai Port entrance, forcing a large number of vehicles to re-route to My Thuy.

Multiple parking lots in the area are also responsible for chaotic traffic during rush hour.

A drone photo of the My Thuy intersection near Cat Lai Port in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Since last November, construction of an interchange at My Thuy to eliminate the bottleneck has been slowed by sluggish land clearance, which has been estimated to take until April 2018 to complete, according to the administration of District 2.

Meanwhile, an additional flyover and tunnel are being built at local congestion hot spots, and are expected to be open to traffic as early as the end of this year.

Since April of this year, the Cat Lai Port authority has introduced online freight-forwarding procedures and payment systems, which have been successful in reducing waiting times for trucks by half.

Heavy congestion near Cat Lai Port in Ho Chi Minh City on September 23, 2017. Photo: Tuoi Tre

A drone photo of the My Thuy intersection near Cat Lai Port in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Tuoi Tre

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