APD | A Chinese-back expressway in Cambodia to start construction

By APD writer Kin Ratha

PHNOM PENH, March. 6 (APD) - A new expressway behind some $2 billion investment plans linking from Phnom Penh capital city to Preah Sinhanoukville province to commence the groundbreaking ceremony on March 22 after 14 months the deal of the project had been approved. 

The official ground breaking ceremony will be held under the presidency of Prime Minister Hun Sen and Chinese ambassador to Cambodia Wang Wentian. 

The expressway will be located on Tomnop Kobsrov Street, the area sandwiched between Cham Chao commune and Krang Thnong commune, northwest of Phnom Penh International Airport and it will not run parallel to the existing the National Road No. 4. 

As planned, the highway will be built in four land divided in two lanes each with a garden separated in middle. Parking stations along the road will be built along the expressway, according to Ministry of Public Works and Transportation.

The expressway will stretch over 190 kilometers – shorter than the current road, which runs for 240 kilometers. It will have four lanes for the majority of its run and will take four years to complete.

The expressway project will be built on a build-operate-transfer basis by state-owned Chinese Communication Construction Company Ltd.

The first of its kind in the Kingdom, the expressway will alleviate traffic from National Road No. 4, the busiest thorough fare in the country, which connects the capital to Sihanoukville’s deep sea port, the main gateway for exports and imports.

A construction team composed of 200 workers from China and the 100-million worth of construction materials arrived and were imported to Cambodia in January, Public Works Ministry said recently. The construction work takes four years to complete.

(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)