Authorities have inspected early construction work on the Road 13 South–Road 5A project, as groundwork advances on the first unpaved section linking Bolikhamxay and Xaysomboun provinces.
The project spans 115.8 kilometres, running from the Road 13 South junction in Pa Lai village, Thaphabath district, Bolikhamxay Province, to the Road 5A junction at Nam Yone Bridge in Anouvong district, Xaysomboun Province.
The project carries a total investment of more than USD 225 million and follows a build–operate–transfer (BOT) model. BOT is a private firm that funds and builds a project and operates it for profits (toll collections), which will later transfer the project to the government.
Officials said tolls will apply after completion only to vehicles weighing more than 9.5 tonnes.
Construction has begun on the initial dirt-road section, covering nearly 30 kilometres, which will later connect to paved sections under subsequent phases.
The Department of Roads instructed the construction company to prepare a detailed design for the first phase, covering the stretch from kilometre 7+000 to kilometre 35+875, with an actual construction length of about 28.9 kilometres.
After receiving approval from the Ministry of Public Works and Transport, the company began preliminary field work.
Current progress includes route clearance, completion of a concrete batching plant, and sub-base construction along roughly 10 kilometres of the route.


