The approved plan calls for the creation of a new terminal, expanded airplane parking and widened roads.
Tan Son Nhat Airport's Terminal 3 will service an estimated 20 million domestic and international passengers as part of the expansion plan selected earlier this year and recently amended and elaborated upon. Aimed for completion by 2030, the plan will add 250 hectares of land by taking space previously occupied by the defense ministry, civil aviation and a golf course, according to VnExpress.
The airport's parking area for planes will expand by 56 spaces to a total of 106. To address endemic traffic problems, the plan also calls for Hoang Hoa Tham and Than Nhan Trung streets to be expanded to four lanes, while 18E road will have 4-6 lanes. In response to the frequent flooding that occasionally disrupts airport activity, the plan will prioritize reservoirs and pump stations at the northern end of the airport.
The expansion was proposed by French consulting firm ADPi, who is tasked with implementing it in coordination with local firms. Originally the cost, not including site clearance, was estimated at VND30 trillion (US$1.3 billion), while the most recent figure is VND18 trillion (US$775.4 million). Officials offered no explanation to the news source for the discrepancy.
The expansion should help alleviate stress on the already overburdened airport, which is designed to accommodate 25 million annual travelers but is currently facing 32 million thanks to increased international and domestic travel, including the route from Saigon to Hanoi, the world's seventh busiest route. Meanwhile, work creeps along on the Long Thanh Airport, which will shoulder part of Saigon's air travel demand when completed.
[Photo via Vietnam Airport]
