The Phu My Bridge, which crosses Ho Chi Minh City’s Saigon River, will open to traffic on September 2 after four years of construction.

BOT Phu My Bridge Company Director Nguyen Thanh Thai announced the opening date for the six-lane bridge last Thursday.

The VND2.1 trillion (US$116.8 million) bridge, which connects HCMC’s districts 2 and 7, is designed to ease traffic congestion on the Saigon Bridge and in the city center.

Traffic congestion is an ongoing problem in HCMC, Vietnam’s most populous city with 7.1 million residents, according to this year’s census.

The Phu My Bridge is 45 meters above the water, allowing large ships to pass underneath.

It will be the third bridge across the Saigon River to open to traffic, with a fourth crossing, the Thu Thiem Tunnel, still under construction.