Plan proposed to open and temporarily operate more than 18 km of the Bien Hoa - Vung Tau Expressway ahead of the 2026 Lunar New Year

On January 31, the Project Management Board No. 85 (under the Ministry of Construction) reported that it had submitted a report to the Ministry on preparations for inspection, acceptance, and the temporary operation of the main alignment and several project components of Component Project 2 of the Phase 1 of Bien Hoa - Vung Tau Expressway section passing through Dong Nai province.

Construction of more than 18 km of the main alignment of Component Project 2 of the Bien Hoa–Vung Tau Expressway is expected to be completed, including asphalt paving and installation of traffic safety systems, before February 8, 2026. Photo: Pham Tung

Asphalt paving and traffic safety systems to be completed before February 8

According to the Project Management Board No. 85, in line with directives from the Ministry of Construction regarding Minister Tran Hong Minh’s conclusions during his inspections of key transport projects, the unit is intensifying efforts in inspection, infrastructure completion, and traffic organization planning to put the main alignment of Component Project 2 of the Phase 1 of Bien Hoa–Vung Tau Expressway into operation ahead of 2026 Lunar New Year.

According to the report submitted to the Ministry of Construction and signed by Nguyen Van Long, Deputy Director of the Project Management Board No. 85, 17.2 km out of 18.2 km of the main expressway section from the Long Thanh Interchange to Component Project 3 (in Ho Chi Minh City), has been paved with asphalt concrete. Remaining work and the installation of traffic safety systems are underway and scheduled for full completion before February 8, 2026.

In its report submitted to the Ministry of Construction, the Project Management Board No. 85 proposed that the Ministry consider and approve the hiring of an operations and maintenance management unit to operate Component Project 2 during the temporary operation of the main alignment until official handover, to ensure safety and the timely resolution of arising issues.

At the Long Thanh Interchange, bridge structures and asphalt paving have been completed on six of seven ramps, meeting conditions for connection to the central expressway. Two overpass ramps have been temporarily opened since December 2025, while the remaining ramps are expected to be completed before March 1, 2026. At the Long Thanh International Airport Interchange, bridge construction has been completed, and approach roads are under construction, with completion expected before March 1, 2026. At the Tan Hiep Interchange, asphalt paving of bridge structures has been completed, and approach roads are scheduled for completion before March 1, 2026.

Regarding the overpasses, two out of five have already been opened to traffic, while two others are expected to be put into operation before the Lunar New Year. The overpass at Km25+780 (Provincial Road ĐT.770B) remains pending due to site clearance issues. In addition, all nine pedestrian tunnels along the route have been completed and put into use, together with several service road sections, ensuring convenient travel for residents on both sides of the expressway.

How will vehicles travel when the project is temporarily put into operation?

In parallel with construction, Project Management Board No. 85 has developed and approved maintenance procedures, submitted traffic organization plans to the Department for Roads of Vietnam, and completed acceptance documentation in preparation for the temporary operation of the main alignment.

The interchange between the Bien Hoa–Vung Tau Expressway and access routes to Long Thanh International Airport (Routes T1 and T2). Photo: Pham Tung

Under the proposed plan for traffic opening and temporary operation of the central expressway section from the Long Thanh Interchange to Subproject 3 (toward Vung Tau), traffic movements would be organized as follows:

For traffic direction from Dau Giay to Vung Tau, vehicles on the Ho Chi Minh City–Long Thanh–Dau Giay Expressway will proceed from Dau Giay to approximately Km24+610 (within the Long Thanh Interchange), then turn onto Ramp N6 (Dau Giay–Vung Tau) to enter the main alignment of the Bien Hoa–Vung Tau Expressway toward Vung Tau.

For traffic direction from Ho Chi Minh City to Vung Tau, vehicles on the Ho Chi Minh City–Long Thanh–Dau Giay Expressway will shift right at approximately Km24+250 to enter Route No. 2 (the Long Thanh Airport Project), then merge at Km17+650 onto the Bien Hoa–Vung Tau Expressway toward Vung Tau.

For traffic direction from Vung Tau to Dau Giay, vehicles on the expressway will, at Km17+650, shift right onto Ramp N1 of Route No. 2, then turn right onto Ramp N7 (Vung Tau–Dau Giay) to continue toward Dau Giay.

For traffic direction from Vung Tau to Ho Chi Minh City, vehicles will, at Km17+650, shift right onto Ramp N1 of Route No. 2 to head toward Ho Chi Minh City.

However, the Project Management Board No. 85 also identified several challenges in the temporary operation of the main alignment. Accordingly, Component Project 2 lies between Component Projects 1 and 3. As Component Project 1 has not yet been finished, and the connecting routes under the Long Thanh Airport Project do not have a specific opening schedule, so during the initial phase, there will be only one access point to the Bien Hoa–Vung Tau Expressway from the Dau Giay side, and the reverse direction from Vung Tau to Long Thanh will lack a fully completed exit.

In addition, as toll collection facilities have not yet been constructed along the entire route, connecting the expressway with the Ho Chi Minh City–Long Thanh–Dau Giay Expressway - which operates a closed tolling system - poses technical challenges related to entry and exit data, preventing toll collection from being implemented in accordance with regulations at this stage.

To ensure smooth temporary operations, the Project Management Board No. 85 proposed that the Ministry of Construction direct relevant agencies to provide prompt feedback on the traffic organization plan. It also recommended that the Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV) put Route No. 2 of the Long Thanh Airport Project into operation concurrently with the expressway, and that ACV coordinate with the Vietnam Expressway Corporation (VEC) to study toll-collection solutions for the transitional period.

By Pham Tung – Translated by Hong Van, Thu Ha