The soft opening of the Ham Luong bridge in the southern province of Ben Tre was held on January 17, three months ahead of schedule.

Guests at the ceremony included Deputy Prime Minister Truong Vinh Trong and Minister of Transport Ho Nghia Dung, as well as senior Party, governmental and local officials.

The bridge’s opening is intended to celebrate the 50 th victory of the Dong Khoi (General Uprising) (Jan. 17) in Ben Tre province and the millennium anniversary of Thang Long-Ha Noi.

The 1,280 m long bridge, which locates on National Highway 60, spans the Ham Luong river to link Ben Tre’s city and four districts of Mo Cay Nam, Mo Cay Bac, Thanh Phu and Cho Lach.

Construction work began on April 1, 2007 with an investment of nearly 787 billion VND from the government budget.

The Ham Luong bridge is expected to open to traffic on the occasion of 35 th anniversary of the Liberation of the Southern Region and National Reunification (April 30).

Once operational, the bridge will contribute to accelerating the socio-economic development of not only Ben Tre province but also its neighbouring province of Tra Vinh as the distance between the province and Ho Chi Minh City will be shorten by 60km along National Highway 60./.