Bui Xuan Cuong, deputy director of the Department of Transport in Ho Chi Minh City, said on Tuesday that several important traffic projects in HCMC were running far behind schedule, due to site clearance delays.

He was speaking at a meeting in which the Economic-Budget Committee of the City People’s Council queried related departments on the progress of many of the main traffic projects in the City.
One such project was the construction of the Rach Tra Bridge connecting Cu Chi and Hoc Mon Districts, which was running a year behind schedule due to delays in site clearance in the Cu Chi District area. It is still unclear when the bridge will open for traffic.
Projects to complete roads 10A and 10B are still being held up as 150 households in Binh Chanh District have refused to hand over land.
The City People’s Committee has extended the deadline to clear the site to broaden the Hanoi Highway on several occasions but Districts 2, 9 and Thu Duc have still not complied.
Similarly, the Tan Son Nhat-Binh Loi outer belt road has not made any progress for almost six months.
Pham Van Dong, head of the Economic-Budget Committee, said that the City should have a mechanism to solve problems related to site clearance, so as to speed up progress of important traffic projects.