The Phnom Penh-Sihanoukville Expressway, the first highway in Cambodia, opened to traffic on Oct 1.
Linking Phnom Penh, the capital, and Sihanoukville, the country's largest port city, the 187.05-kilometer highway stretches through five provinces and has eight toll stations, three service areas and one parking area.
Driving time between the two destinations is shortened to less than two hours, which dramatically cuts down logistics costs and makes travel easier for local people. The road will speed up economic development of the country.
A view of a toll station of the Phnom Penh-Sihanoukville Expressway in Cambodia [Photo/sasac.gov.cn]
With a total investment of nearly $2.02 billion, the project broke ground on June 18, 2019.
The highway is invested and built, and operated by China Communications Construction Company Limited (CCCC). During construction, CCCC purchased building materials and related services valued at more than $246 million in Cambodia and provided jobs opportunities to more than 11,000 local people. It's worth noting that 82.3 percent of the workers during the peak construction period of the project were Cambodian.
The company also made efforts to cultivate local building talents, contributing to progress in the country's infrastructure technologies.
An aerial view of the Phnom Penh-Sihanoukville Expressway in Cambodia that opened to traffic on Oct 1 [Photo/sasac.gov.cn]
(Executive editor: Wang Ruoting)
