Concerns surround pilot policies to clear capital flows in traffic projects
Many pilot regulations are considered groundbreaking and are not only “stimulating” more private investment capital and budget flows from many cities and provinces but also empowering capable localities to invest in large-scale road traffic projects, especially regional links. However, there remain many concerns when implementing specific policies in practice. For example, some projects pass through crowded residential areas and incur substantial site clearance costs, so the State’s low capital contribution to projects still make it difficult to call for investment in the public-private partnership (PPP) form. Under a government proposal, road traffic projects can “relax” the ratio of State capital participation to a maximum of 70 per cent of the total investment, an increase of 20 per cent compared to current regulations, to attract investors. The assignment of a number of localities to balance resources and have sufficient capacity and management experience to carry out the tasks of the governing agency and the Ministry of Transport is expected to create a breakthrough in road transport infrastructure investment and improve the efficiency of using State budget funds from the central and local levels.