Proposed transport options for passenger access to under-construction Long Thanh Airport in southern Vietnam
The under-construction Long Thanh International Airport, located in Dong Nai Province, southern Vietnam, is scheduled to begin operations in December 2026, so planning transport solutions for passenger access to the airport is a critical task.
The current Dong Nai Province is a merger of the former Dong Nai Province and neighboring Binh Phuoc Province, effective from July 1, as part of a recent major administrative restructuring in which Vietnam’s total number of provinces and cities was reduced to 34 from 63.
Passenger volume depends on airport accessibility
Long Thanh International Airport was designed to have an annual capacity of 100 million passengers, with 25 million passengers annually in phase 1 (2026–30).
The goal is to ease pressure on Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City and become the largest air transit hub in ASEAN.
It is expected to drive economic, tourism, and logistics growth in southern Vietnam while attracting domestic and international transit passengers.
Additionally, the airport will serve as a central aviation service hub for both domestic and international needs.
Research from a team from the Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology, as part of a project on bus system connectivity to Tan Son Nhat International Airport, found that international passengers in Ho Chi Minh City show the highest preference for using Long Thanh International Airport, at 74.8 percent, compared to 42.7–60.4 percent in other regions nationwide.
The proportion of domestic passengers likely to choose Long Thanh ranges from 14.9 to 35.3 percent.
Under the current plan, Long Thanh Airport will handle 80 percent of international passengers and 20 percent of domestic arrivals, while Tan Son Nhat will take on 20 percent of international and 80 percent of domestic traffic.
However, this distribution will largely depend on accessibility, travel patterns, and passenger preferences.
Infrastructure connected to Long Thanh Airport
To meet the above ambitious goals, logistics and connectivity infrastructure are essential.
Currently, metro and railway connections from Ho Chi Minh City to Long Thanh Airport include proposed metro lines M4, M6, and M2 leading to Thu Thiem. From there, passengers could transfer to a light rail line or the North-South high-speed railway, which would branch to the airport.
However, none of these rail routes have completed design or feasibility studies.
On the road network, key expressway projects connecting Ho Chi Minh City to Long Thanh Airport include the existing 55-km Ho Chi Minh City–Long Thanh–Dau Giay Expressway with four lanes, currently heavily congested near the city.
Planned road projects include a project to widen the Ho Chi Minh City–Long Thanh Expressway from four to eight lanes, expected from September 2025 to December 2026; the nearly completed Ben Luc–Long Thanh Expressway, which is 47 km long and has four lanes; the 99-km Dau Giay–Phan Thiet Expressway linking to Long Thanh from the north; and the 77.8-km Bien Hoa–Vung Tau Expressway, to be completed by 2025.
In addition to expressway projects, three key roads directly connecting to Long Thanh Airport are also planned.
Route 1 with eight lanes from the airport’s west gate will connect to the Bien Hoa–Vung Tau Expressway, National Highway 51, and Provincial Road 25C.
Route 2 with four lanes is scheduled to be parallel to the Bien Hoa–Vung Tau Expressway and link Route 1 to the Ho Chi Minh City–Long Thanh–Dau Giay Expressway.
Route 3 with eight lanes is planned to connect to the east gate of the airport.
Once Long Thanh’s Terminal 1 opens in December 2026, the expressway from Ho Chi Minh City to the airport must be expanded to eight lanes.
Without such systems, travel time from Ho Chi Minh City to Long Thanh could take at least two hours under normal conditions and up to five hours with traffic congestion, according to the Airports Corporation of Vietnam.
This could discourage passengers from using the airport, leading to lower traffic volumes and reduced interest from airlines.
A dedicated express bus system is proposed for Long Thanh International Airport to ensure timely and reliable access. These shuttle buses would operate in exclusive lanes adjacent to expressways’ emergency lanes.
The buses would be large (45–50 seats), equipped with modern amenities, online passenger information systems, spacious luggage compartments, and flight check-in information screens.
To avoid urban congestion, a feeder system of smaller buses would collect passengers within the city and bring them to a major hub at the An Phu Interchange.
Additional hubs could later be added in the former Binh Duong and Ba Ria–Vung Tau Provinces, which were merged into Ho Chi Minh City. From these hubs, passengers would transfer to the express buses to reach Long Thanh Airport.
This integrated transfer system would feature unified ticketing and prioritize punctuality, comfort, and environmental friendliness, ensuring a smooth and dependable journey for Long Thanh Airport passengers.
By Dr. Pham Xuan Mai – Tuoi Tre News – July 21, 2025