Vietnam’s Lào Cai and China’s Hekou are separated by a river and are the most important bilateral nodes along the “Kunming–Hanoi–Haiphong Economic Corridor.” With the opening of the expressway from Kunming to Hekou and the steady progress of railway construction, the rapid transit network on the Chinese side of the corridor has been fully completed. Recently, reporters learned from the Honghe Foreign Affairs Office that after five years of construction, the expressway from Lào Cai, Vietnam, to Hanoi is expected to open to traffic next month. Driving from Kunming, China, one can reach Hanoi, Vietnam, in just eight hours.
File photo: Scenery of Vietnam
Border traders: Freight capacity could increase by 70%
“Last year, I took my cousin’s car from Lào Cai to Haiphong to sign a contract. The drive from Lào Cai to Hanoi on the old road took nearly 12 hours even without traffic,” said Huang Xian, a border trade businessperson. Driving there isn’t like driving domestically—you can go 60 or 80 km/h here, but in Vietnam, the speed limit is generally between 40 and 50 km/h, and almost all intersections have limits around 20 km/h. Based on her estimates, she expects to increase freight volume by at least 70% next year, which will also boost her income accordingly.
Travel agencies: It would be great if self-drive procedures were simplified
Ms. Qi, one of the heads of the People’s Road branch of Hekou International Travel Agency, said that currently the only way to self-drive abroad is to find a qualified trading company to provide a guarantee and handle the relevant procedures before you can take your own car out of the country. As someone in the tourism industry, she knows the market for self-driving tours is huge, so she hopes Hekou can open up outbound self-driving tours and, even better, simplify the related procedures.