In mid-May, our reporters were present on National Highway 7, passing through My Thanh commune (Yen Thanh district) and Hoa Son commune (Do Luong district, Nghe An province). Here, the road surface along the entire route has been asphalted, providing smooth travel for vehicles. However, due to some obstacles in land clearance, the road remains constricted at certain points, with construction equipment and materials scattered along the way. These unfinished sections result in an uneven and dusty road surface, posing safety risks to passing vehicles.
According to the report from Project Management Unit 4 (Vietnam Road Administration), the investor of the project: there are currently 16 construction sites, 53 machines and equipment, 17 engineers, and 108 workers on the project site, which is basically suitable for the handed-over ground level.
Scattered construction equipment and materials – Photo by Ho Van Ngoi
However, due to discontinuous land handover, the contractor has not been able to fully mobilize equipment and manpower for construction. The cumulative output so far has reached more than VND 615 billion, equivalent to 86.07% of the contract value (excluding contingency costs), which is 10.15% behind the schedule of the construction packages that have been extended until May 31, 2025, for Package 01, July 18, 2025, for Package 02, and April 30, 2025, for Package 03.
The reason for the delay in the packages is that the construction ground has not been handed over in its entirety and according to the local commitment plan. As of now, the local authorities have handed over about 54.182/55.405 km (97.80%) of the total distance, including both sides of the route, of which the contractors have been able to access 54.182/54.182 km for construction.
Vehicles passing by stir up dust – Photo by Ho Van Ngoi
The remaining unhanded over section is about 1.220/55.405 km, accounting for 2.2%, including 44 sections. Of these, there are 24 sections in Dien Chau district with a total length of about 0.517 km and 20 sections in Yen Thanh district with a total length of about 0.703 km.
The Conclusion Notice of Mr. Hoang Phu Hien, Vice Chairman of Nghe An Provincial People’s Committee, at the meeting to resolve difficulties in site clearance, compensation, support, and resettlement for the project to upgrade and expand National Highway 7 from KM0-KM36 and handle landslides due to floods in Khe Thoi – Nam Can, Nghe An province on April 24, 2024, clearly stated: Site clearance work still has problems and difficulties that have not been resolved, and there is a large volume of work to be done (still entangled with 1.179/55km, including both sides of the route, including 44 sections, accounting for 2.13%, affecting 98 households) In Dien Chau district with a total length of about 476m, and in Yen Thanh district about 700m. While the project is about to run out of time, the Ministry of Construction has granted the last extension (July 2025).
Authorities put up a warning sign for the narrow road section – Photo: Ho Van Ngoi
According to Project Management Unit 4, they have proposed to the Vietnam Road Administration to report to the Ministry of Construction and the People’s Committee of Nghe An province to direct the People’s Committees of Dien Chau and Yen Thanh districts to focus on propaganda and mobilization for people to comply with the State’s regulations on compensation, support, and resettlement. Expedite the completion of related dossiers and procedures to hand over the ground to the contractor as soon as possible.
For households that do not meet the compensation conditions, or have land according to the measured extract that does not affect the project, or illegally build structures on the road reserve land, or have had an approved decision ensuring legal procedures, and have been organized by the district People’s Committee through many dialogues and propaganda. At the location of Yen Thanh and Dien Chau districts, the Site Clearance Council considers handing over the ground and organizing the protection of construction in May 2025 so that the project can be completed soon, creating a good premise to promote socio-economic development and ensure traffic safety in Nghe An province in particular and the Central region in general…
The National Highway 7 upgrade project has not yet reached its destination – Photo: Ho Van Ngoi
The project to upgrade and expand National Highway 7 from Km0 – Km36 and handle landslides due to floods in Khe Thoi – Nam Can, Nghe An province, is 27.7km long, from Km0 – Km39, with a total investment of VND 1,300 billion.
This is an important infrastructure development project that, once completed, will connect National Highway 7 to the North-South Expressway, enhancing the exploitation capacity of the transport corridor from Nậm Cắn International Border Gate, Nghe An province (connecting to Laos) to the central coastal provinces, providing a great boost to socio-economic development…
The project was started in September 2022 and was expected to be completed by 2024, with the section from Km 0 – Km5 (from Dien Chau intersection to the expressway intersection) to be completed by 2023.
However, the cumulative disbursed capital so far has only reached VND 790.557 billion out of VND 1,300 billion, and the project continues to fall behind schedule.
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Clearing the Path: Resolving Prolonged Obstacles in Construction with Decisive Local Action
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