Vientiane–Vang Vieng Expressway


The Vientiane–Vang Vieng Expressway is an expressway under construction in Laos connecting the capital of Vientiane with Vang Vieng to the north. Once completed, it will be the first expressway in Laos. It will form a part of the Kunming–Bangkok Expressway and a planned Vientiane–Boten Expressway, roughly paralleling Route 13. The trip from Vientiane to Vang Vieng will be shortened from 4 hours to 1.5 hours using the expressway. Speeds on the expressway are designated at 100 km per hour on flat terrain from Sikeuth village to Phonhong District in Vientiane Province, and 80 km per hour through the more mountainous section between Phonhong and Vang Vieng Districts.
The expressway is 95 percent owned by Chinese developer Yunnan Construction Engineering Group, who are also the developer, and five percent by the Laotian government. The cost is estimated at US$1.2 billion. The developer will retain a 50 year concession on tolls from the expressway.
the expressway is 70 percent complete. Authorities expect to open the road to traffic before Lao National Day on 2 December 2020. Construction began at the end of 2018 and was initially scheduled to finish in 2021, but will be completed early. The road, which includes twin tunnels almost 900 metres long through Phoupha Mountain, will shorten the route by 43 km as compared with the existing Route 13. The expressway toll will be 550 kip per kilometre, or about 62,000 kip for a one-way trip between Vientiane and Vang Vieng. The Vientiane-Vang Vieng expressway is the first section of a planned expressway from Vientiane through the northern provinces to Boten in Luang Namtha Province, which borders China.