The 30km Thang Long highway will run from Hoang Quoc Viet Road to the foot of Ba Vi Mountain. Underground will be a metro route, revealed Deputy Minister of Construction Nguyen Dinh Toan.

The 30km Thang Long road will run from Hoang Quoc Viet Road to the foot of Ba Vi Mountain. Underground will be a metro route, revealed Deputy Minister of Construction Nguyen Dinh Toan.

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A new point in the draft construction plan for Hanoi to 2030 is building Thang Long road. Could you elaborate?

This 30km road will run from Hoang Quoc Viet to the foot of Ba Vi mountain. The top priority is traffic development and to link the Son Tay and Phuc Tho cultures with that of Thang Long-Hanoi.

Museums and statues will be placed along the road to retell historical stories of Thang Long-Hanoi and Ha Tay. The construction density will be thin, but there will be the most modern works in Vietnam.

Underground there will be a metro route, with supermarkets and shops, for relaxation and shopping.

When will this road be built?

The construction may begin in 2011 to deal with traffic problems in western Hanoi and also to shorten the gap of income between the central and suburban areas of Hanoi.

The draft plan aims to reduce population density in the inlying areas, but how exactly?

Residential areas along the No. 4 belt road will have only high-rise apartment blocks for people who are living in old apartment blocks in the inner city. The Government has ordered heights and populations of old apartment blocks inside the city to be reduced.

The area between the city’s downtown and residential areas will be ecological projects, with no high-rise buildings, but many trees and lakes.

According to this draft plan, the headquarters of government agencies will be based in My Dinh and then moved to Ba Vi after 2030. What do you think about criticisms that this move will be a waste?

Many ministries and agencies have had plans to move to My Dinh, except for seven agencies. After we build the administrative centre in Ba Dinh, the works in My Dinh will become offices for businesses. It is not a waste.

How will we raise dozens of billions of dollars for building facilities under this plan?

Investment in infrastructure is estimated at around $60 billion. We will implement the policy “land for infrastructure”. Accordingly, enterprises will build No. 4 belt road and works along it to receive land.

Hanoi has a lot of land even though it plans more than 700 projects, which must follow the city’s development plan.

Can we finalise this plan in 40 years?

That is the problem for the managers. I think we need to strengthen management and have suitable mechanisms for implementation. We can’t confirm whether or not we will follow the plan to the letter.

Source: VNE