Da Nang has just submitted a written proposal to the Vietnamese Ministry of Transport to turn the Han River-Vinh Dien River national inland waterway route into a local one starting from 2023, Deputy Director in charge of the Da Nang Department of Transport Bui Hong Trung announced on Monday.

The move aims to contribute to ensuring inland traffic order and safety, as well as to facilitating municipal authorities to manage and make planning for the development of inland waterway transport infrastructure in the city. This will help create synchronism in inland waterway management work, develop a system of inland waterways ports and wharves, and inland waterway transport infrastructure in the city, as well as deal with arising violations of inland waterway traffic order and safety in the city in a timely manner.

While waiting for the approval from the Ministry of Transport, the Da Nang People's Committee proposed the ministry to prioritise allocating capital and directing relevant units to dredge a section of the Han River between the green light north of the Nam Bac Dam and the downstream of the Han River Bridge. The dredging is expected to be completed in 2022 with the aim to ensure smooth and safe operation of ships on the Han River.

Meanwhile, the Da Nang Maritime Administration will increase its inspects and dredge an existing navigation channel connecting from the green light north of the Nam Bac Dam to the Tien Sa port turning basin. The work is also scheduled to be completed in 2022.

Moreover, the focus will be on continuing maintaining the above-mentioned channel in order to ensure the smooth inland traffic flow from the Han River to the sea in service of the city’s waterway tourism routes, including the Da Nang-Ly Son one.

Currently, in Da Nang, there are seven inland waterway routes with a total length of 63.2km, of which there are 5 local inland waterways with a total length  of 43.3km and 2 national ones with 19.9km in length.

Reporting by THANH LAN - Translating by M.DUNG