It is also open to new investment forms that have not been applied yet in the city, if there are investors interested in pursuing them, says department director Tran Quang Phuong. He said the city is in dire need of funds to launch and complete key transportation projects.

"Immediately, we need about VND200 billion for taking preparatory steps for 37 most important projects. And this will likely be raised to thousands of billions of dong when the projects start," Phuong said.

Urgent infusion

Many ongoing transportation projects also needed an urgent infusion of funds, he added. The project to build a tunnel crossing the Truong Son expressway – the section before the Thu Duc district-based Linh Trung Export Processing Zone (EPZ) – is a typical example.

Although construction of the tunnel is considered essential for local residents, particularly those who work at the Linh Trung EPZ, the project is moving at snail’s pace.

Vu Kien Thiet, director of the Urban Transportation Management Unit No 2 in charge of building the tunnel, said: "We have already finished half of the project, but need another VND17.6 billion to complete the rest on time."

The Nguyen Van Cu Bridge, one of the city’s main transportation projects, has been put into operation very recently. However, one of its approach roads – the Ben Van Dong Road, has not yet been upgraded because of a capital shortage.

The bridge, therefore, cannot play its full role, according to Le Quyet Thang, director of the Urban Transportation Management Unit No 1 responsible for managing traffic in the area.

The Thu Thiem bridge is also in need of another VND40 billion for constructing subsidiary facilities.

New investment forms

"To settle capital problems facing transportation projects, we have no better measure than invite all economic sectors to participate in our construction," Phuong said.

"We will continue applying familiar investment forms like BOT (build-operate-transfer), BT (build-transfer) and BOO (build-own-operate). However, we are also ready to implement new investment forms suggested by investors if these can help us settle the current shortage of capital," he added.

Phuong further said that his department had for several years adopted the policy of encouraging multiple sectors to participate in developing transportation projects.

The department website constantly updated the list of projects needing investment, he noted. However, few domestic investors are interested in them because they usually require capital much higher than their financial capacity, he noted. Foreign investors are unable to take up the transport department’s investment invitation because of global economic turmoil, he said.