The chopping down of the beautiful old trees on Tôn Đức Thắng Street has begun.

The city has commenced its plan to fell 84 mahogany trees along the street to clear the way for Thủ Thiêm Bridge 2 which will be completed by 2015 or 2018.

Work on the bridge, which will be constructed at the point where Tôn Đức Thắng Street meets the water, is scheduled to begin next year. However, the Department of Defense, which operates the adjacent shipyard, has asked that the date be pushed back to 2018 in order to “complete its national defense production duties,” according to VN Express.

These aren’t the only old trees in Saigon that will be felled to make room for massive infrastructure projects.

To accommodate new underground metro stations, 51 trees, some 150 years old, were recently uprooted and axed in front of the Saigon Opera House and 57 trees located in 23/9 Park, adjacent from Bến Thành Market will suffer a similar fate.

Architect Hoang Truc Hao recently said that preserving ancient trees, which he called “vestiges,” should be part of the city’s master plan so they are not thoughtlessly cut down:

“It’s necessary to sacrifice the trees for urban transit projects. But the green area should be restored [after construction work is complete]."

While we’re all for making Saigon more livable and are keenly aware of the need for new bridges and public transit, the city has few old trees to spare.

[Photos via Thanh Nien]