The North-South Expressway section between HCM City and Day Giay area will be installed with Japan's intelligent transport systems. — Photo dulichgo.blogspot.com

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — Japanese Toshiba, Hitachi and Itochu companies have won an order to supply the Vietnam Expressway Corporation (VEC) with an Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) package.

The ITS package will include electronic toll collection (ETC), traffic control and equipment monitoring systems.

The order, with an estimated value of 4 billion yen (more than US$39 million), is the first for an integrated ITS package that Japanese companies have received from overseas. The project will be supported by loan assistance from the Japanese government, and commercial operations are expected to start in the first half of 2017.

The ITS package will be installed on the 55-kilometer section of Viet Nam's North-South Expressway between HCM City and Dau Giay. Toshiba will provide the ITS equipment, while Hitachi is responsible for the construction and Itochu for related business affairs.

Increasing traffic congestion is a serious fall-out of the continuing economic development of southern Viet Nam, including HCM City, and projections show road use and congestion in the region will continue to grow.

The installation of the ITS package on the HCM City and Dau Giay expressway section, one of the worst-affected areas, will help reduce traffic jams and improve logistical efficiency.

The VEC evaluated the technical competence and installation record of companies that had tendered for the order and selected the Japanese companies on the basis of their competitive bid.

The North-South Expressway is currently under construction and will connect Ha Noi capital city with HCM City via central Da Nang City.

Once completed, it will be approximately 1,811 kilometres long. To keep up the country's rapid economic growth, the Vietnamese government in 2008 drew up a master plan for the construction of 22 expressways, with a total length of approximately 6,000 kilometres, including the North-South Expressway.

Toshiba, Hitachi and ITOCHU will continue to propose ITS systems, including traffic control and ETC systems, and the three companies are committed to contributing to Viet Nam's continued economic growth by providing and installing advanced road transportation systems. — VNS