Ben Luc-Long Thanh Expressway promises big savings for Vietnam’s Mekong Delta

After 12 years of construction, the 58-kilometer expressway opened to traffic on Thursday, creating a new east-west corridor connecting southwestern and southeastern Vietnam.

For the first time, driver Hung used the expressway to transport a container of frozen shrimp for export to Cai Mep Port.

He said the difference was immediately apparent compared with previous journeys through congested roads around Ho Chi Minh City.

The new route was about 40 kilometers shorter each way and saved roughly 15 liters of diesel, worth about VND450,000 (US$17.3).

Although tolls were around VND100,000 ($3.8) higher than on the old route, he still saved VND350,000 ($13.5) per trip.

More importantly, the journey takes one to one and a half hours less because trucks can avoid roads that are frequently gridlocked.

"Despite the higher toll, the distance is shorter, fuel consumption is lower, and we no longer have to worry about being stuck in a long line of vehicles and missing a ship,” Hung said.

Vo Van Phuc, chairman and CEO of Vietnam Clean Seafood Corporation in Can Tho City, said transporting shrimp from the company's processing plant to Cai Mep Port for export to the U.S., Europe, and Asian markets had for years taken considerable time and generated additional costs.

His firm produces and processes around 1,000 export containers a year.

Therefore, the new expressway is expected to deliver significant benefits, Phuc said.

Businesses across the Mekong Delta have welcomed the new route, which creates an additional connection from the region to the seaport cluster in the east and facilitates trade and exports.

Benefits extend beyond exporters

Long-haul truck drivers are also changing their routes to take advantage of Ben Luc-Long Thanh Expressway.

Nguyen Tan Dat, a truck driver transporting goods from Ca Mau Province to Ho Chi Minh City, said trucks previously traveled along Ho Chi Minh City-Trung Luong Expressway before continuing via Nguyen Van Linh Street and Ring Road No. 2 to reach Ho Chi Minh City-Long Thanh-Dau Giay Expressway.

On days when traffic was heavy, he could spend more than three hours simply inching through the gateway to Ho Chi Minh City.

Constant braking and acceleration not only prolonged the journey and increased fuel consumption but also raised the risk of collisions in crowded traffic conditions.

Since switching to Ben Luc-Long Thanh Expressway, the section from Nguyen Van Tao Interchange to National Highway 51 takes him less than 40 minutes, Dat said.

Tran Van Thang, a seafood trader at a fishing port in Ca Mau, said his company had conducted two trial round trips along the entire Ben Luc-Long Thanh Expressway over the past two days.

The full journey takes only around 50-60 minutes, more than 50 percent less time than the previous route through the Ho Chi Minh City gateway.

The shorter journey means drivers can complete the round trip within a single day.

The firm plans to expand its seafood market and increase the number of truck trips in the coming period.

The expressway is also changing how freight stations serving the domestic market organize cargo transportation.

N.T.Th., the owner of a freight station specializing in shipments from Dong Thap to the Ba Ria-Vung Tau area of Ho Chi Minh City, said he switched to Ben Luc-Long Thanh Expressway on Thursday.

Shorter delivery times have already contributed to an increase in cargo volumes.

Fruit shipments have benefited particularly from the shorter transport time.

Faster deliveries have improved customer satisfaction.

In the longer term, the economic benefits of Ben Luc-Long Thanh Expressway will depend on how effectively it is integrated with connecting roads, as well as how transport operators reorganize cargo collection and delivery points and coordinate with seaports.