Decision No. 07/2011/QD-TTg dated January 25, 2011 of the Prime Minister approving the master plan on transport development in the central key economic region through 2020 and orientations towards 2030

THE PRIME MINISTER

Decision No. 07/2011/QD-TTg of January 25, 2011, approving the master plan on transport development in the central key economic region through 2020 and orientations towards 2030

Pursuant to the December 25, 2001 Law on Organization of the Government;

At the proposal of the Ministry of Transport (Report No. 7871/TTr-BGTVT of November 9, 2010) regarding the master plan on transport development in the central key economic region through 2020 and orientations towards 2030,

DECIDES:

Article 1. To approve the master plan on transport development in the central key economic region through 2020 and orientations towards 2030, with the following principal contents:

I. DEVELOPMENT VIEWPOINTS

1. To develop transport in the central key economic region in line with the national transport development strategy and master plan as well as national and local socio-economic development orientations.

2. To develop transport in the central key economic region on the basis of promoting to the utmost the region's advantages in geographical location and natural conditions as a north-south economic linkage and a sea gateway of the Central-Central Highlands region and the central region.

3. To develop an uninterrupted and linked transport system towards modernization, ensuring   transfer   between   modes   of transportation to meet transport needs. To focus investment in key transport works with breakthrough characteristics and motive-force role in socio-economic development and security and national defense maintenance for the region, such as seaports, airports and expressways. To attach importance to maintenance to efficiently and sustainably exploit existing infrastructure facilities.

4. To apply advanced transportation technologies, especially multimodal transport and logistic services, for raising service quality and reducing costs in order to raise competitiveness; control and significantly reduce traffic accidents and mitigate environmental impacts during transport operation.

5. To sustainably develop the regional transport network in compliance with urban and rural development plans, ensuring linkage between delta and mountainous areas.

6. To diversify sources of investment capital; to mobilize all resources at home and abroad and encourage all economic sectors to invest in transport infrastructure development and transportation business.

7. To promote human resource development, apply advanced technologies and enhance international cooperation in developing regional transport.

8. To reserve reasonable land areas for developing transport infrastructure and further
assure traffic safety corridors.

II. DEVELOPMENT OBJECTIVES

1. Objectives through 2020

a/ Transportation:

To meet the needs for cargo and passenger transportation with quality, safety and convenience and reasonable charges, control and reduce traffic accidents and limit environmental pollution on the basis of organizing rational transportation and developing multimodal transportation and logistic services. To step by step develop mass transit in urban centers.

Specific targets: The entire region's transportation volume by 2020 will reach 101 million tons of cargo and 185 million passenger arrivals with an average annual growth rate of 8.5%-9.5%, for cargo, and 7.5 – 8.5%, for passengers, during 2010-2020. The volume of cargo to be handled at regional seaports will be 40-50 million tons by 2020; the average annual growth rate during 2010-2020 will be 15%; passengers to pass regional airports-will be 15-16 million arrivals by 2020 with 30 average annual growth rate of 12%.        

b/ Transport infrastructure:

To upgrade the existing system of national highways up to prescribed technical standards. To complete the Hue-Da Nang-Quang Ngai-Binh Dinh expressway. To upgrade provincial roads to prescribed technical standards and build some new necessary routes. To further develop rural transport so that 70% of rural roads will have hard surface. To build coastal roads under planning.

To upgrade the Thong Nhat railway up to prescribed technical standards and Build feeder railways linking national railways with seaports, industrial parks and economic zone.

To step by step upgrade and expand seaports to meet demands with a total capacity reaching 40-50 million tons/year by 2020.

To step by step upgrade and expand airports to meet demands. To complete the Da Nang international airport to reach a capacity of 4 million passengers/year in 2011. The total capacity of regional airports will reach 20-25 million passengers and 3 million tons of cargo per year by 2020.

To upgrade existing riverways to prescribed technical standards and strive to extend riverways under management.

2. Development orientations towards 2030

To satisfy social needs for quality, fast, and safe transportation and transportation services up to international standards, at reasonable and competitive charges. To ensure convenient transfer among modes of transportation and linkage among provinces and cities in the region with the whole country and countries worldwide.

To basically complete and modernize the transport infrastructure network. To further build other infrastructure facilities under planning.

III. DEVELOPMENT PLANNING

1. Transportation development

To develop 5 major transportation corridors of the region:

- Coastal corridor: This is part of the most important national north-south coastal corridor, running along existing national highway 1 A, and linking coastal urban centers, economic zones and industrial parks in the region. This corridor permits rail, road and sea transportation.

- Da Nang-national highway lA-(national highway 9-Lao Bao) and Da Nang-national highways 14B and 14D-Nam Giang corridors: These are two branches of the east-west economic corridor which, in addition to meeting regional transportation needs, handle transited cargo of Laos and northeastern Thailand.

- Da Nang-Central Highlands corridor: This is a transportation corridor linking Da Nang seaport with the Central Highlands, running along existing national highway 14B and Ho Chi Minh road.

- Dung Quat-Central Highlands corridor: This is a transportation corridor linking Dung Quat seaport with the Central Highlands, running along existing national highway 24.

- Quy Nhon-Central Highlands corridor: This is an important transportation corridor linking Quy Nhon seaport with the Central Highlands and Cambodia, running along existing national highway 19.

2. Transport infrastructure development

a/ Roads:

Main lengthwise routes

- Expressways: By 2020, to complete the construction of the north-south expressway section crossing the region, around 470 km long, with 4-6 lanes, of which the 130-km Da Nang-Quang Ngai section will be completed by 2015 and other sections, from 2015 to 2020.

- National highway 1 A: The 460-km section within the region, from Phong Dien to Cu Mong pass. To expand some high-traffic sections to grade-II road standards, with 4 lanes. To replace all weak bridges. To build necessary bypass routes in urban centers. To complete the construction of 2 road tunnels crossing Phu Gia and Phuoc Tuong passes (Thua Thien Hue).

- Ho Chi Minh road: The section within the region, including 2 branches: The 150-km western branch from Pe Ke pass to Thanh My has been built up to grade-IV road standards; the 209-km Cam Lo-La Son-Tuy Loan eastern branch will be built into an expressway from now to 2020.

- Eastern Truong Son road: The 175-km section within the region, in Quang Nam province (142 km) and Quang Ngai province (33 km). To improve the whole road to reach at least grade-IV or grade-V road standards.

- Coastal road: To complete this road within the region, from Thua Thien Hue to Binh Dinh. to reach at least grade-Ill road standards, on the basis of taking full advantage of existing roads, in combination with upgrading them and building new ones for linkage. Specifically, to build a new section of around 150 km and some river-crossing bridges such as Cua Dai bridge (Quang Nam. under construction), Tra Khuc II bridge (Quang Ngai), De Gi and Tarn Quan bridges (Binh Dinh).

Major transverse routes

Expressways: After 2020, to build the Quy Nhon-Pleiku expressway of 160 km long, with 4 lanes.

National highway 49: 92 km long, from Thuan An port to the border with Laos. To upgrade the whole highway to at least grade-IV road standards, with 2 lanes. The 9-km section from Hong Van commune T-junction to international border gate S3 will be built to reach grade-Ill road standards.

National highway 14B: 74 km long, from Tien Sa to Thanh My. The current 23-km Tien Sa-Tuy Loan section is being expanded to reach grade-I urban road standards, with 48-m foundation and 33-m surface. To upgrade the remaining sections to grade-Ill road standards, with 2 lanes.

National highway 14D: 75 km long, from Giang to Dak-Ta Oc border gate (the Vietnam-Laos border). To upgrade this highway to grade-Ill or grade-IV road standards, with 2 lanes. To link national highways 14B and 14D into 161-km national highway 14B from Tien Sa to Ta Oc.

National highway 14E: To upgrade the 79-km section from national highway 1A (the Cay Coc T-junction-Thang Binh) to Kham Duc township (Ho Chi Minh road) to grade-IV road standards, with 2 lanes; and the national highway 14E's 12-km section from national highway 1A to the coastal road to grade III road standards, with 2 lanes.     

National highway 24: 169 km long, from Thach Tru (Quang Ngai province) to Kon Turn town; to upgrade the whole highwav to grade- Ill road standards, with 2 lanes.National highway 24B: 18 km long-; from Tra Khuc bridge (on national highway 1) to Sa Ky port; to upgrade this highway to grade-III road standards.

National highway 19: 238 km long from Quy Nhon port (Binh Dinh) to Le Thanh (Gia Lai); to upgrade the 77-km section within the region, from Quy Nhon port to An Khe pass, to grade-III road standards. Particularly, to upgrade the section from Quy Nhon port to national highway 1's crossroads to grade-I or grade-II road standards, with 4-6 lanes.

National highway 1D: 35 km long, from Quy Nhon (Binh Dinh) to Song Cau (Phu Yen). To upgrade the section within Quy Nhon city to urban road standards and keep the remaining section as grade-III road, with 2 lanes.

South Quang Nam road: 209 km, from Tam Thanh crossing Tra My and Tac Po to Dac To, of which the section within the region is 140 km long (in Quang Nam province). To upgrade this road to grade-IV road standards, the sections crossing townships and townlets, grade-III road standards, and the section crossing Tain Ky city, urban road standards.

Tra My-Dung Quat road: 81 km long, from Bac Tra My township's T-junction (Quang Nam) crossing Tra Bong and Binh Son districts (Quang Ngai) to Dung Quat port. To complete the construction of the Dung Quat-Binh Long section to reach grade-I road standards, with 6 lanes (under the planning on Dung Quat economic zone). To upgrade the Binh Long-Tra Bong section to grade-I road standards, with 4 lanes, and the Tra Bong-Tra Thaith-Tra My section, grade-EIWgrade-IV mountainous road standards.

b/ Railways

Existing railways:

By 2020, to completely upgrade Thong Nhat railway to national railway standards. To relocate Da Nang railway station to Hoa Khanh and Quy Nhon railway station to DieuTri under urban planning and planning on the north-south express railway.

To-be-built railways:

To build  feeder railways linking the national railway with seaports, industrial parks and economic-zones, such as Chan May port, Lien Chieu  port, Chu Lai economic zone, Dung Quat port and Quy Nhon port (Nhon Hoi).

To study the construction of a railway tunnel crossing Hai Van pass to reach technical standards for serving firstly Thong Nhat railway, then the north-south express railway. To study the construed of the Da Nang-Kon Turn railway belonging to the Central Highlands railways, from Da Nang-Kon Tum-Dak Lak-Buon Ma Thuot-Chon Thanh to Ho Chi Minh City.

c/ Seaways

To build and upgrade major ports with a size meeting development requirements in each period, specifically as follows:

- Da Nang port:

To develop Da Nang port into an international gateway port in the central region. To upgrade Tien Sa wharf for accommodating ships of 30,000-50.000 DWT and container ships of 4,000 TEU, with complete and modern passenger terminals for accommodating passenger ships of up to 100,000 GRT. To build new Son Tra wharf zone (Tho Quang) for accommodating ships of 5,000-20,000 DWT (reduced load) with storm-sheltering functions and exclusively for national defense and security purposes, in replacement of Han river's existing wharves to be relocated.

To develop the Lien Chieu wharf zone to step by step serve as a major wharf zone of Da Nang international gateway port, for accommodating ships of 50,000-80,000 DWT and container ships of 4,000-6,000 TEU.

To study the construction of a logistic zone on the road south of Hai Van tunnel, 30-50 ha, as a center for receiving and distributing cargo for Da Nang port.

- Dung Quat port:

This is a major grade-I national general port in the region, including 2 major wharf zones of Dung Quat I (existing), and Dung Quat II (to be built in My Han bay), and Sa Ky satellite wharf.

Dung Quat I wharf zone for general and containerized cargo and ships of 10,000-50,000 DWT; a special-use wharf for exporting products of Dung Quat oil refinery for ships of 10.000-30,000 DWT, a special-use wharf zone of heavy industrial establishments for ships of 20.000-70,000 DWT. and wharves and waterway works for building and repairing seagoing ships of up to 300,000 DWT. This is a major wharf zone of Dung Quat port for development in the initial period.

Dung Quat II wharf zone: This is a special-use wharf zone for accommodating crude oil, coal and ore ships of 100,000-350.000 DWT to directly serve the oil petrochemical-refinery and large cast-iron and steel refinery complexes, with a wharf for handling general cargo for the development of expanded Dung Quat economic zone in the subsequent period.

- Quy Nhon port:

This is a grade-I major national general port within Vietnam's seaport system. It serves provinces north of Southern Central Vietnam, the Central Highlands and the Indochinese border economic region.

Quy Nhon-Thi Nai wharf zone: This is a major and key wharf zone to be invested in the period through 2015, including a general container wharf for ships of 10,000-30,000 DWT and a special-use wharf for ships of 5,000-7,000 DWT.

Nhon Hoi wharf zone: To step by step develop this wharf zone with a size meeting actual market needs to serve as a special-use wharf zone in combination with handling general cargo of future large industrial establishments, for accommodating ships of 20,000-50,000 DWT.

In addition to the above 2 wharf zones, to study the construction of local wharves as Quy Nhon port's satellite wharves, such as Dong Da, De Gi and Tarn Quan, for smaller ships.

- Thua Thien-Hue port:

This is a grade-II local general port within Vietnam's seaport system, including the Chan May wharf zone and Thuan An satellite wharf.

The Chan May wharf zone mainly handles

general cargo directly for Chan May industrial park and part of transited cargo for Laos. It has a special-use wharf for ship building and repair industries and for international tourists and north-south tourists. It accommodates cargo ships of 30.000-50,000 DWT and passenger ships of 100,000 GRT.

The Thuan An satellite wharf accommodates

ships of 3,000-5,000 DWT.

- Ky Ha port (Quang Nam):       

This is a grade-II local general port within Vietnam's seaport system. To develop port mainly on the right bank of Truong (Jiang river for accommodating ships of 5,000-20,000 DWT, including a general and special-use wharf to directly serve Chu Lai industrial park, Nui Thanh.

- Ben Dinh port (Quang Ngai):

To build on Ly Son island Ben Dinh, general port as a local general port to directly serve Ly Son island district for accommodating ships of up to 1,000 DWT.

d/Airways

- Da Nang international airport:

To further develop this airport as a central international airport of the central region. By 2020, to completely build and upgrade this airport to reach 4E grade according to ICAO standards, for accommodating aircraft B747-400) or equivalent, with an annual capacity of 10 million passengers and 200,000-300,000 tons of cargo. By 2030, to increase its handling capacity to 20 million passengers and 500,000 tons of cargo per year.

- Chu Lai international airport:

To develop this airport to reach 4F grade according to ICAO standards. By 2020, to complete phase-1 investment with an annual capacity of 1 million tons of cargo. By 2030, to further upgrade and develop this airport into the largest national cargo transshipment center for accommodating aircraft B747-400 or equivalent, with an annual capacity of 5 million tons of cargo and 4 million passengers.

- Phu Bai international airport:

To develop this airport to reach 4F grade according    to    ICAO    standards    for accommodating B777 aircraft or equivalent. By 2020, its annual capacity will reach 5 million passengers and 100,000 tons of cargo. To  increase its annual capacity to 9 million passengers and 300,000 tons of cargo by 2030.

- Phu Cat domestic airport:

To develop this airport to reach 4D grade according to ICAO standards for accommodating A320/321 aircraft or equivalent. By 2D2GCTits annual capacity will reach 0.5 million passengers and 5,000 tons of cargo. After 2020, to increase its capacity depending on practical needs.

e/ Inland waterways

To Upgrade locally managed riverways to grade-IV or grade-V standards. To upgrade some major riverways such as Tam Giang lagoon, and Huong, Han, Truong Giang and Thu Bon rivers to grade_I to grade-IV standards. To put around 200 km of coastal lagoons and river mouths into operation. To arrange signal buoys for ensuring transport safety. To build some river landing stages for daily-life and tourism purposes.

f/ Urban and local transport

To develop urban and local transport under approved plans of the provinces and cities.

3. Works prioritized for investment

Works prioritized for investment are works which can link transport infrastructure facilities, creating a motive force for regional development. They include building new Da Nang-Quang Ngai and Cam Lo-Tuy Loan expressways; upgrading and expanding national highways 1A, 49, 49B and 24; expanding and upgrading and making in-depth investment in Da Nang and Quy Nhon seaports and Da Nang international airport; and developing Chu Lai international airport.

4. Estimated land funds for transport development

Land funds for development of the transport infrastructure system in the central key economic region through 2020 under planning are estimated at 430 km2, accounting for 1.5% of the region's area (excluding land for transport in inner cities and towns).

IV. MAJOR SOLUTIONS AND POLICIES

1. Transportation development solutions and policies

- To encourage enterprises to renew and modernize road vehicles, ensuring comfort, safety and environmental protection. To raise road technical standards to comply with ASEAN countries' road standards for ensuring international linkage and integration. To revise laws and regulations for facilitating movement of road motor vehicles of regional countries, especially Thailand, in the Vietnamese territory.

- To develop rail transportation, especially inter-regional transport, for reducing pressure on road transport. To raise service quality of rail transportation, especially intra-regional trains.

- To encourage all economic sectors to engage in sea transportation business and provide maritime services. To renew loading/unloading technologies at major places of transport and apply advanced transportation technologies, especially multimodal transportation.

-To raise service quality of air transportation on the basis of increasing frequency of flights and arrange appropriate flight hours. To rationally, rapidly and conveniently link transshipment flights.

2. Traffic infrastructure development solutions and policies

- To promote to the utmost the capacity and efficiency of transport works in the region, their building and upgrading must comply with specialized and regional master plans, preventing the concentration of investment in some localities, thus causing waste.

- To prioritize investment in breakthrough works which create regional linkage (works along the region's lengthwise roads and roads linking seaports with the Central Highlands and international transportation corridors).

- To promote internal resources and facilitate attraction of investment from different economic sectors for building and upgrading transport infrastructure in different forms, such as public-private partnership (PPP), issuance of bonds, build-operate-transfer (BOT), build-transfer (BT), investment-collection of tolls for return, transfer of the toll-collecting right.

- To further attract official development assistance (ODA) of other countries and international financial institutions in different forms.

-To allow the provinces and cities to auction land use rights for raising capital for transport infrastructure development in the region.

- To reserve appropriate land areas for transport infrastructure development in the coming years and in the long term.

3. Traffic safety assurance solutions and policies

- To improve the legal system and consolidate traffic safety management organizations from central to local level in order to ensure Sustainable traffic order and safety. To decentralize localities to manage roads (especially national highways), patrol, control, and handle violations of traffic rules.

- To raise the effectiveness of public information and education about, in combination with enforcement of, traffic rules.

- To develop the transport infrastructure system while ensuring safety corridors with traffic safety appraised in association with building crossroads and daily-life culverts and dealing with traffic black spots.

- To raise the quality of driving training and tests and management of drivers and inspection of motor vehicles.

- To enhance rescue and salvage work for reducing damage caused by traffic accidents.

4. Sustainable development and environmental protection solutions and policies

- To improve standards, guiding documents and regulations on environmental protection in the transport sector. To increase public information and education about and enforcement of the law on environmental protection.

- To raise the quality of environmental protection supervision and management in transport. To conduct environmental appraisal right from the stage of strategy, plan and project formulation. To closely supervise the implementation of environmental protection regulations in work construction projects and transport industrial establishments for mitigating adverse environmental impacts.

- Traffic works and vehicles must meet technical and quality standards compliant with environmental protection requirements. 

Article 2. Organization of implementation

1. The Ministry of Transport shall assume the prime responsibility for and coordinate   with People’s Committees of provinces and cities in the region and  concerned ministries and sectors in. assigning, managing and organizing the implementation of this master plan. In the course of implementation, it should be reviewed and evaluated, for timely modification to meet practical requirements.

2. Concerned ministries and sectors and People's Committees of provinces and cities in the region shall coordinate with one another in identifying investment capital sources and formulating appropriate mechanisms and policies so that this master plan can be implemented synchronously according to schedule.

Article 3. This Decision takes effect on March 10. 2011.

Article 4. Ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of government-attached agencies, and chairpersons of provincial-level People's Committees shall implement this Decision.

Prime Minister

NGUYEN TAN DUNG

Appendix

LIST OF PROJECTS PRIORITIZED FOR INVESTMENT

(To the Prime Minister's Decision No. 07/2011/QD-TTg of January 25, 2011)