The Directorate for Roads of Viet Nam (DRVN) has demanded that the Viet Nam Expressway Corporation (VEC) take urgent measures to fix defects on the Da Nang - Quang Ngai Expressway to ensure traffic safety.

Functional forces repair damage on the Da Nang - Quang Ngai Expressway at the intersection of Tuy Loan. Photo: PHUONG UYEN

The DRVN has requested VEC -the investor of the Expressway- to strictly follow the instructions of the Ministry of Transport on urgently deploying to repair damaged road surfaces of this route.

Specifically, the Road Administration Department III has released warnings and sanctioned administrative penalties on VEC but so far this business and regular management and maintenance units have failed to remedy the above-mentioned damages on the route.

Meanwhile, these damages are increasingly worsening, potentially posing a risk of traffic safety with the emergence of new accidents-prone hotspots.

The DRVN demanded VEC to direct the regular management and maintenance units to promptly fix defects pointed out by the Road Administration Department III and find the causes to prevent such damage from occurring in the near future.

For the repair of damage on the section of National Highway 14B from Km23+126 - Km24+825 at Tuy Loan Intersection of the Da Nang - Quang Ngai Expressway, VEC shall urgently make repairs soon.

The 139km expressway in the central region crossing through Quảng Ngai and Quang Nam provinces and Da Nang kicked off in 2013 with total investment of VND34.5 trillion (US$1.5 billion), sourced from official development aid from the Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA) and the World Bank (WB).

The highway features six lanes, including two lanes for urgent works with a width of 256m. The road is designed for vehicles to run at speeds of up to 120kph.

The project is an important part of the north-south expressway. It helps alleviate traffic on the National Highway No 1 and boost economic competitiveness for the central region.

Reporting by PHUONG UYEN – Translating by A.THU