Construction of the two-kilometer Nhon Trach Bridge between the city’s District 9 and Nhon Trach District at an estimated VND2.2 trillion ($94.92 million) is expected to start next year and be complete in 2024.

The builder is the Cuu Long Corporation for Investment Development and Project Management of Infrastructure, which belongs to the Ministry of Transport.

The bridge over the Dong Nai River can be accessed from HCMC’s Ring Road No.3, which will allow vehicles to travel to neighboring provinces like Binh Duong, Long An and Dong Nai without having to enter the inner city.

The Nhon Trach Bridge will have six lanes, a width of 19.5 meters and a clearance of 110 meters for navigation, allowing passage for ships of up to 5,000 tons.

According to the investor, it will facilitate the transportation of goods and reduce pressure on the existing Dong Nai Bridge as well as inner HCMC.

Now, to travel from HCMC to Dong Nai, which is home to many industrial parks, the options are taking the Long Thanh-Dau Giay Expressway, going to Di An Town in neighboring Binh Duong Province and crossing the Dong Nai Bridge or using the Cat Lai Ferry in District 2 besides some minor routes.

But for goods transport, truck drivers prefer the expressway and the Dong Nai Bridge.

The transport departments of Dong Nai and HCMC recently discussed the construction of the Cat Lai Bridge, which would be built five kilometers upstream from the Nhon Trach ferry station.

Ring Road 3 is still in the early stages of construction.