The Ministry of Construction says the BOT toll station at Dien Ban, on National Highway 1 in An Thang ward, is expected to collect fees for 26 years and 7 months under its contract, Tuoi Tre reports. The ministry gave the figure in a written reply to a question from An Thang voters on 3 November.
Voters had asked whether the station has passed its contracted collection period, when it will stop operating and be dismantled, and for a clear timetable. According to Tuoi Tre, the reply gives the contracted period and says collection began on 1 January 2016, but does not give an end date or a removal plan.
The station sits at Km943+975 and is run by CECO545 BOT, a project company of Construction Works Company 545, the investor. Residents have told authorities that many trucks and cars cut through village roads to avoid the toll, damaging them, and some access roads into residential areas are temporarily closed for repairs.
The ministry confirmed that vehicles avoid the station and said it will direct coordination with the Vietnam Road Administration and local authorities to reduce congestion and accidents. It also said earlier proposals to limit toll avoidance did not succeed. The operator has previously asked the state to buy back the right to operate the road, citing revenue losses from vehicles avoiding the station.
The widened section through An Thang, from Km944+200 to Km946+400, has a 33-metre roadbed and 21-metre carriageway with four motor lanes and two lanes for non-motorised traffic. The ministry said its scale fits the national road network plan for 2021 to 2030, with a vision to 2050.
Sources
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