News

Ring road 3 to boost trade, ease traffic

The 53-kilometre long third ring road traversing Phnom Penh and Kandal, to be officially inaugurated by Prime Minister Hun Sen on August 3, will contribute greatly to boosting trade and economy besides easing traffic, according to experts.

The new ring road, constructed at a cost of $273 million with concessional financing from the Chinese government and contribution of the Royal Government of Cambodia, connects National Road No. 4 in Sangkat Chaom Chau 3, Khan Porsenchey, Phnom Penh with National Road No. 1 in Kean Svay district in Kandal province and is expected to help improve cross-border transport, promote international trade and turn the surrounding areas into a development zone.

The construction work of the road, undertaken by Chinese company Shanghai Construction Group Co Ltd began on January 14, 2019, and it included four flyovers and eight bridges. It traverses 15 km in Phnom Penh and 38 km in Kandal province.

Initially expected to be completed in 42 months, the road work got delayed due to the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic.

The new road has a width of up to 27 metres for the city and for out of town, the width of the road is 25 meters.

The third ring road has four flyovers (crossing National Roads 4, 3, 2, and 21) with a total length of 1,000 metres.

The project also includes the construction of two bridges across the Bassac River at Anloung Chen Island with a total length of 996 metres (including the 630-metre-long East Bassac Bridge and the 366-metre-long West Bassac Bridge) and six medium and short bridges and 113 sewers of all kinds.

With the new ring road, Phnom Penh currently has three city belt roads. The first connects Chroy Changvar Bridge to Chbar Ampov Bridge. The second connects Kob Srov Road to National Road 2 in Kandal province’s Prek Samrong village.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Public Works and Transports has already conducted a feasibility study on the construction of Phnom Penh’s fourth ring road.

Prime Minister Hun Sen said last June that the government will build more infrastructures to boost economic growth. “I feel lost sometimes in Phnom Penh and other areas outside the capital because of the rapid infrastructure development,” Mr Hun Sen was heard saying at the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of Phnom Penh-Bavet Expressway in Kean Svay district in Kandal province.

Lim Heng, vice president of the Cambodia Chamber of Commerce, told Khmer Times yesterday that the new ring road is an important infrastructure asset for the country as it is developing fast.

“The ring road can ease traffic, decongest the main city roads and also reduce accidents. Without entering Phnom Penh, goods can now be transported from one province to the other,” he noted.

Heng further said that the road can be a blessing for the real estate sector as well as it can boost property prices in the surrounding areas.

Source: https://www.khmertimeskh.com