Danang launches design contest on tunnel and bridge

Director of the city’s transport department, Le Van Trung, who is head of the contest’s organising committee, said 13 designs from 11 architecture firms including two from Japan and one from Spain, proposed their initial designs in a meeting with city officials last weekend. 

Trung said the city plans to hold a public vote to pick the best design to be constructed. 

He said the contest winner will walk away with a cash-prize of US$4,400, while the runner-up will get US$3,100, and third place wins US$2,200. 

Trung said the tunnel is needed due to the increasing traffic in the city. 

The partnership between the Vietnamese Bridge Design company and Japanese Oriental Consultants Global company also proposed a six-lane tunnel through the Han River 

Last year, the city planned to build a tunnel, the first traffic route under the Han River, with investment of US$157 million. 

City authorities said the tunnel would help ease traffic congestion at junctions in Son Tra and Hai Chau districts. 

Currently, the city has six major bridges including Thuan Phuoc, the Han Swing Bridge, Rong (Dragon), Tran Thi Ly, Tuyen Son and Nguyen Tri Phuong, and the 1960s-built Nguyen Van Troi Bridge. 

In 2013, the city’s Rong (Dragon) Bridge claimed the American Council of Engineering Companies’ Diamond Award in the category for structural systems. 

Earlier this year, the city also launched a contest to plan and design the Han River banks, aiming to create beautiful scenery for locals and tourists.