Developing strategic transport infrastructure

Given its position at the heart of the Southern key economic region, Dong Nai City has identified the development of a modern and integrated transport infrastructure system as a strategic breakthrough.

From airports and seaports to expressways, ring roads, and railway lines under development, transport infrastructure is not only opening up new development space but also catalyzing Dong Nai's progress toward its goal of becoming an important national growth pole.

A new-generation transport ecosystem

Dong Nai is one of the few provinces and cities in Vietnam with all five modes of transport. In recent years, the city has made strong investments in transport infrastructure, with a focus on greater connectivity, synchronization, and modernization.

The Bien Hoa-Vung Tau Expressway provides a vital transport link between Ho Chi Minh City and Dong Nai, as well as between Long Thanh International Airport and the Cai Mep-Thi Vai seaport complex.

Under the current plan, the first phase of Long Thanh International Airport is expected to officially begin operations by the end of 2026. At the same time, several expressways and ring roads are also scheduled to be completed and opened to traffic in 2026. Dong Nai will consequently become one of the localities with the largest number of expressways in operation nationwide.

According to Deputy Secretary of the Dong Nai City Party Committee Vo Tan Duc, the simultaneous implementation of major projects, including Long Thanh International Airport, the Bien Hoa-Vung Tau, Dau Giay-Lien Khuong and Phan Thiet-Dau Giay expressways, as well as Ho Chi Minh City’s Ring Roads 3 and 4, has placed Dong Nai City at the heart of the Southern key economic region, strengthening its role as a major regional transport and transit hub.

Against this backdrop, the Government’s issuance of Resolution No. 255/NQ-CP on August 27, 2026, approving the implementation of urgent works for the project to extend the Ben Thanh-Suoi Tien metro line to Dong Nai City’s administrative center and Long Thanh International Airport, provides an important basis for accelerating the project while marking a milestone in the development of the city’s new-generation strategic transport infrastructure. Metro systems are regarded as the backbone of modern urban transport and a key driver of urban spatial restructuring and sustainable development.

In addition to the metro extension project, Dong Nai is coordinating with relevant agencies and localities to advance the North-South high-speed railway and the Thu Thiem-Long Thanh metro line.

Linking growth centers and development corridors

After around three years of construction, the mainline of the Bien Hoa-Vung Tau Expressway was opened to traffic in mid-May 2026. The expressway not only provides a key transport link between Ho Chi Minh City and Dong Nai but also serves as the main road connection between Long Thanh International Airport and the Cai Mep-Thi Vai seaport complex, two key growth areas in the Southern key economic region.

Within the Southern key economic region, Ho Chi Minh City and Dong Nai form a pair of growth-driving urban centers. Against this backdrop, in recent years, the two localities have worked together to promote investment in interconnected transport infrastructure projects, both to drive economic growth and expand development space.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tran Quang Phu, Vice Rector of Ho Chi Minh City University of Transport, said the pace of transport projects connecting Ho Chi Minh City and Dong Nai has improved significantly in recent years. These projects are a clear example of a new approach to regional development. Notably, they are no longer viewed as separate infrastructure projects of individual localities but as part of an integrated regional connectivity strategy, with the two sides planning, investing, and developing together while sharing the benefits.

Politburo Resolution No. 16-NQ/TW also calls for ensuring the progress of Phase 2 of Long Thanh International Airport, the Bien Hoa-Vung Tau railway, airport-connecting routes, and inter-regional infrastructure. The resolution envisions Long Thanh International Airport as a key international aviation gateway and transit hub for Vietnam, a strategic node in regional and global supply chains, and part of an integrated aviation ecosystem.

Accelerating new-generation strategic transport infrastructure projects that strengthen regional connectivity and key development corridors is essential to realizing the tasks set by the Politburo for Dong Nai City under Resolution No. 16-NQ/TW dated July 21, 2026, on the construction and development of Dong Nai City through 2035, with a vision to 2065.

Accordingly, the resolution calls for the development of new-generation strategic infrastructure, with priority given to modern, interconnected transport systems linking growth centers and development corridors. These systems will serve as the backbone for shaping Dong Nai City’s development space. Priority will also be given to key transport corridors that create seamless links among logistics chains and connect modern infrastructure between the Can Gio International Transshipment Port, Cai Mep Ha Port, and Long Thanh International Airport.

By P.Tung – Translated by M.Nguyet, Minho