At a meeting last Friday, Bui Xuan Cuong, deputy director of the city Transport Department, said that HCMC needs $122 billion for traffic infrastructure development by 2020. That’s about VND2,562,000,000,000,000 or just a bit less than the country's 2013 GDP ($171 billion).
If this figure seems a bit out of reach, that’s because it likely is - the city’s current budget is just over $2 billion over the next 6 years, reports Tuoi Tre.
The city’s traffic and transport development plan, recently approved by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, calls for the construction of six expressway routes and upgrades to many national highways, including National Highways 1, 13, 22, 50 and 1K.
There are also plans to build an overhead railway line running from the Hoa Hung Railway Station in District 3 to Binh Trieu Station in Thu Duc District, in addition to five future metro lines.
Looks like HCMC could use a few more dollars.
[Tuoi Tre // Photo via Lyt King]
