Mong Sen Viaduct in the northern mountainous province of Lao Cai, which has the highest pillars in Vietnam, has been opened to traffic on a trial basis from 3:00 pm on Tuesday.

All vehicles, except for those with a tonnage of over 20 metric tons and container trucks, are allowed to pass through the viaduct between 6:00 am and 5:00 pm every day during the trial operation period.

The Lao Cai People’s Committee said on Tuesday that the provincial Department of Transport and the Department of Construction had sent a document on the trial operation of the viaduct, part of a road linking Noi Bai – Lao Cai Expressway with Sa Pa, a famed tourist destination in the northern mountainous province, to Lao Cai – Sa Pa BOT Investment JSC, the investor of the project.

The departments required arranging personnel to regulate traffic on the viaduct to prevent commuters from stopping there to take photos and reporting the trial operation results.

The investor must also urge the Transport Construction Investment Management Authority under the Ministry of Transport to early check the project to put it into official operation before August 30.

The viaduct, with its highest piers measuring 83 meters, spans two hills, a hydropower plant, and terraced rice fields in Sa Pa.

Work on the project started on January 3, 2021 and the final beam of the viaduct was installed on September 29, 2021.

The project, which carries a price tag of VND450 billion (US$18.8 million), is 612 meters long with five arches and 14 meters wide with four lanes.

The current road between Lao Cai City and Sa Pa Town in Lao Cai Province is 30 kilometers long and forces commuters to pass through the Ba Tang Mountain Pass, which often sees landslides.

When in place, Mong Sen Viaduct will reduce the travel distance between the two areas by 2.5 kilometers.

Commuters will be able to avoid the Ba Tang Mountain Pass.

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