Work on 139 km expressway started Tuoitrenews The groundbreaking ceremony held on May 19 in Quang Nam Province for the 139 km expressway that will link Da Nang to Quang Ngai. Tuoitre A groundbreaking ceremony for the first expressway route through Central Vietnam was held by the Transport Ministry in Dien Ban District, Quang Nam Province on Sunday. The 139 km expressway, which will connect Da Nang, Quang Nam and Quang Ngai, is part of the north-south expressway that is expected to be about 1,811 km long. The expressway will start in Hoa Van District, Da Nang and end at the beltway of Quang Ngai City. It will be 26.5 meters wide and will have four lanes for traffic and two lanes for emergency stops. The road will have 102 bridges, including 27 large ones, and a 540 meter-long two-way tunnel. Total investment in the expressway project is estimated at US$1.472 billion, including $673  million from Japanese Official Development Assistance (ODA), $631  million from a loan granted by the World Bank, and the rest from the State budget. Speaking at the ceremony, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said the expressway will contribute to reducing the high traffic density on National Highway 1, improving traffic safety, and reducing traffic accidents. He requested that the project management unit efficiently perform all tasks related to site clearance, compensation, and relocation, and that the investor ensure the quality of the work. Upon completion in 2017, the expressway will help cut the travel time between these localities, promote the attraction of foreign investment in Central Vietnam, facilitate the social and economic development of central provinces, and contribute to strengthening security and defense and improve the life of people, said the Vietnam Expressway Investment and Development Corporation. The new road will also facilitate international transport between Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia through the East-West economic corridor. It will also aid the transport of relief for people in central provinces during the annual stormy seasons.  It is one of 16 expressways of the north-south expressway system. So far, two of these roads have been completed and put into operation. One is the 40 km Ho Chi Minh City-Trung Luong  expressway that links the city to southern Long An and Tien Giang provinces, and the other if the 50 km Cau Gie-Ninh Binh expressway. This year will see the beginning of work on another, the 55 km long HCMC-Dau Giay expressway, which will be completed in 2014.