The Ministry of Transport recently confirmed that it has received a petition from the residents of Binh Dinh Province regarding the urgent need to accelerate the construction progress of the National Highway 19 renovation, upgrade, and expansion project connecting the Central Highlands.
According to the feedback from local residents, the current project has several incomplete elements, posing a disruption to traffic. During heavy rains, landslides have led to rocks and soil flowing into residential areas. Notably, some accidents have been reported during the construction of this road section.
The Ministry of Transport said that as of now, five out of eight project packages have been essentially completed. However, the progress of the remaining three packages is behind schedule. Specifically, Package XL01, passing through the An Khe Pass, has achieved only 46 percent completion, while both Package XL02 and Package XL04A have merely reached 74 percent.
The MoT attributes the delay to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the project's initial timeline. Additionally, the extended rainy season in the Central Highlands region, spanning from five to seven months each year, has resulted in the erosion of the completed layers of the crushed stone sub-base in various sections, necessitating repeated reconstruction efforts.
Notably, Gia Lai Province imposed restrictions on granting permits for extracting road subgrade materials from the late 2022 to the early 2023. It was not until October 2023 that the region overcame material supply challenges, allowing contractors to commence the concurrent execution of road subgrade projects.
Throughout construction process, the Ministry of Transport has taken decisive measures to guide and rectify related units. They have directed the investor, specifically the Project Management Unit No.2, to strictly address contractors who violated regulations, transfer work volumes, and replace contractors in packages facing delays to expedite the project's completion schedule.
Nevertheless, challenges persist in land clearance in the Binh Dinh Province, particularly around the areas of Ba La Bridge, Bau Sen Bridge, and the location of the medium-voltage power pole at Km64+300. Some households have not consented to construction due to disagreements over the compensation and land clearance plan. The Ministry of Transport urges the Binh Dinh provincial People's Committee to swiftly address and resolve these issues regarding land clearance, facilitating the complete handover of the project site for construction commencement.
The Ministry of Transport is currently guiding the project investor and construction contractors to concentrate on mobilizing machinery, equipment, manpower, and materials. They are advised to capitalize on favorable weather conditions to expedite the construction progress, with the goal of achieving substantial completion by April 30 and overall project completion by June 30, 2024.
The transportation connectivity enhancement project in the Central Highlands region spans 143 km, crossing through Gia Lai Province with 126 kilometers and Binh Dinh Province with 17 kilometers. The total investment for the project is US$155.8 million, approximately over VND3.6 trillion, sourced from Official Development Assistance (ODA). According to the initial plan, the project was originally set to be completed in 2023.
