Currently, in order to create a seamless connection from the forest to the sea, opening up cooperation opportunities on the economic corridor between Quang Tri province and the provinces of Southern Laos and Thailand (PARA-EWEC), the policy of building National Highway 15D is considered the most important project among the driving projects, creating a breakthrough, promoting the socio-economic development of Quang Tri province. On December 25, 2024, Alternate member of the Party Central Committee, Secretary of the Quang Tri Provincial Party Committee Nguyen Long Hai visited and worked at La Lay International Border Gate, inspected the implementation of investment projects to build National Highway 15D and the Conveyor Belt Project to transport coal from Laos to Vietnam, showing the special concern of the provincial leaders about the necessity of opening this important national highway.
Road to My Thuy port, Hai Lang district - Photo: D.T
From "the road to a rich future for our Fatherland"...
On the occasion of the 93rd anniversary of General Secretary Le Duan's birthday, April 7 (1907-2000), Mr. Dong Ngac, former Assistant to General Secretary Le Duan, recorded comrade Le Duan's ideas about the modern Truong Son road, published in Nhan Dan newspaper.
According to the article, in 1973, after the Paris Agreement on Vietnam was signed, comrade Le Duan visited the Truong Son Corps. In the unit's golden book, comrade Le Duan wrote: "The Truong Son Road is a brilliant feat in the history of our nation's resistance war against the US to save the country. The Truong Son Road is the road of the will to win, of courage, of heroic spirit. It is the road connecting the North and the South, unifying the country; it is the road to a rich future for our Fatherland...".
In the above excerpt, according to Mr. Dong Ngac, he underlined both clauses. However, at that time, we often paid attention to the strategic role of the Truong Son road in the final stage of the resistance war, but few people clearly recognized the idea of General Secretary Le Duan wanting to turn the road serving the war into "the road to a rich future for our Fatherland".
Also according to the article, in 1977, traveling from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City by car to survey the situation in some southern provinces after liberation, comrade Le Duan talked about the task of upgrading National Highway 1 and in the future rebuilding the Truong Son road into a complete, modern cross-Vietnam road, parallel to National Highway 1 to ensure smooth economic exchange from North to South and vice versa.
During the development process, many cross-roads will be opened like ladders connecting towns and cities in the eastern coastal plains with economic and cultural centers that have been and will be formed in the midlands and mountainous areas of the west. This idea was also shared by General Secretary Le Duan with Mr. Phan Trong Tue and Mr. Dinh Duc Thien, members of the Party Central Committee who were in charge of transportation.
When National Highway 15D is opened, it will connect conveniently with the Cam Lo - La Son expressway - Photo: D.T
During many visits to the Central provinces in the following years, General Secretary Le Duan emphasized: The Central provinces have the advantage of having three regions: plains, coastal areas, and mountainous areas. Therefore, in the plan to restore and develop the economy and culture, we must strive to exploit the plains effectively, at the same time, we must take care of developing the marine economy, coastal areas, and make every effort to expand the economy in the midlands and mountainous areas.
We must thoroughly understand the viewpoint of going up from land and labor, finding ways to gradually change the economic structure and crop structure, along with redistributing the labor force appropriately for each region... (book "Building Binh Tri Thien into a rich and beautiful province", Thuan Hoa Publishing House, 1982, pages 48, 49).
Mr. Dong Ngac said: “During his visits to the Central region, General Secretary Le Duan proposed to arrange a section of the Truong Son road from Thanh My to Kham Duc (Quang Nam - Da Nang) or from Dakrong to A Sau, A Luoi (Binh Tri Thien), but at that time the road was bad and security was not really guaranteed, so the leaders of the above provinces could not arrange it. And we only took General Secretary Le Duan a short section of about 15 km of the Truong Son Dong road from Dakrong bridge to the South, then returned to Highway 9 to return to Hue.
In the idea of General Secretary Le Duan, the modern Truong Son road is the second cross-Vietnam road, the leading economic and people's road to help Vietnam escape poverty and backwardness, and at the same time ensure national defense and security in the new era. And that idea arose right in the years of the most fierce resistance war against the US to save the country.
...To open up a large space for development
It can be seen that the construction of National Highway 15D in Quang Tri province today originates from the urgent need for socio-economic development and international economic integration of the locality, but it also realizes the idea of General Secretary Le Duan nearly 50 years ago: "In the development process, many cross-roads will be opened like steps connecting towns and cities in the eastern coastal plain with economic and cultural centers that have been and will be formed in the midlands and mountainous areas of the west".
After the Decision to establish the Southeast Economic Zone was issued, an important traffic route was identified to be implemented, which is National Highway 15D connecting La Lay International Border Gate (Dakrong) to My Thuy seaport (Hai Lang).
The National Highway 15D construction investment project has a route length of about 92 km, of which the section from My Thuy seaport to National Highway 1 is 13.8 km long. Currently, the Provincial People's Committee has proposed the central government to support resources for upgrading with a total estimated investment of VND 950 billion and has been approved in principle by the Ministry of Transport; the section from National Highway 1 to Cam Lo - La Son Expressway is 8 km long. The province is proposing the Prime Minister to approve in principle for investment implementation in the form of public investment with capital support from the increased central budget revenue in 2024 with an estimated cost of VND 990 billion; the section from Cam Lo - La Son Expressway to the West branch of Ho Chi Minh Road is 34 km long and is completing the pre-feasibility study report under the public-private partnership (PPP) method with a total investment of about VND 5,662 billion and proposing to support state capital to participate in the project of VND 2,550 billion.
A central road in Pakse city, Champasak province (Southern Laos region) - Photo: D.T
Surveying the characteristics of the two main routes to La Lay International Border Gate shows that on the Lao side, Route 15B connects from La Lay International Border Gate to the center of Salavan provincial capital and connects to Pakse city, Champasak province (the economic and social center of Southern Laos). Route 15B from Salavan province to La Lay International Border Gate has a length of nearly 147 km and has been upgraded and expanded by the Lao Government with a scale of 9 m wide roadbed, 8 m wide road surface, asphalt road surface structure, completed and put into use since the beginning of 2013. Thus, it can be seen that the traffic of the two main routes to La Lay International Border Gate has been upgraded, creating favorable conditions to connect the northeastern provinces of Cambodia, eastern Thailand, southern Laos with the central region of Vietnam through La Lay International Border Gate to Quang Tri.
The establishment of an additional PARA - EWEC Corridor from Ubon Ratchathani Province (Thailand) to Champasak (Laos) via La Lay International Border Gate to Quang Tri Province is an important international route that directly supports the East-West Economic Corridor (EWEC). Thus, La Lay International Border Gate will complement Lao Bao International Border Gate, creating mutual support between the two routes EWEC (via Lao Bao) and PARA - EWEC (via La Lay).
When the Southeast Quang Tri Economic Zone is formed and developed, the construction of National Highway 15D from La Lay International Border Gate to My Thuy Port in the future will shorten the route by about 80 km compared to the current route. Regarding the idea of General Secretary Le Duan: "Taking care of the development of the marine economy, coastal areas and making efforts to expand the economy in the midlands and mountainous areas...
Finding ways to gradually change the economic structure, crop structure along with the reasonable reallocation of the labor force for each region"..., it can be clearly seen that, one of the benefits when National Highway 15D is opened, the land potential of a large area of the province from the West and Southeast of Dakrong district, South of Cam Lo district, to the Southeast of Hai Lang district, Quang Tri town will be effectively exploited, contributing to the redistribution of population, promoting socio-economic development in remote areas of the province.
The importance of this national highway also lies in opening up a convenient transportation route for millions of tons of goods each year from Laos and Thailand to Quang Tri, then spreading to other provinces in Vietnam or exporting to other countries through the seaport system of the Central provinces, including My Thuy seaport in the Southeast Quang Tri Economic Zone, especially when the conveyor system transporting coal from Laos to Vietnam is put into operation.
In addition, the current Cam Lo - La Son expressway, which passes through Quang Tri, is 37 km long but does not have a cross-road connecting it to National Highway 1. This inconvenience will put the expressway at risk of being blocked if a traffic incident or natural disaster occurs, making it difficult for rescue, relief, and traffic clearance between the two routes. When National Highway 15D is opened, these problems will be satisfactorily resolved.
National Highway 15D is considered a promising route, playing the role of "unblocking the acupuncture point", creating a clear opening from La Lay to National Highway 1 and My Thuy port, Southeast Quang Tri Economic Zone, contributing to promoting the socio-economic development of Quang Tri province and the entire Central region, so it needs to be actively implemented.
Dan Tam
Source: https://baoquangtri.vn/nghi-ve-mot-tuyen-duong-nhieu-hy-vong-190769.htm
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