NDO - Hanoi and the provinces of Hung Yen, Bac Ninh, Bac Giang and Vinh Phuc have submitted a proposal to the Prime Minister requesting the inclusion of the capital city’s fourth ring road on the list of key national projects.

Most of the 98-kilometre long road is located in the capital city (56.5 kilometres) while the sections in Hung Yen Province and Bac Ninh Province are 20.3 kilometres and 21.2 kilometres long, respectively.

The two provinces of Vinh Phuc and Bac Giang are outside the fourth ring road but are adjacent to the starting and end points of the road.

At an estimated cost of VND135 trillion (US$5.87 billion), the road is designed to improve connection between Hanoi and provinces in the capital region.

It is also expected to boost socio-economic development in areas along its path and the wider Red River Delta region.

In its proposal, the five localities agree that in order to ensure its connectivity, the project will not be divided into smaller projects where each locality will build the section traversing it.

They also suggested that the expressway component of the road should be elevated instead of running at ground level, which could help address 23 at-grade intersections with other roads to ensure uninterrupted connectivity.

Since it is not feasible to use government funding and the investment time will be prolonged, given the project’s huge cost, the five localities have suggested building the road using a combination of public investment and public-private partnerships.