Logo of Phnom Penh Post newspaper Phnom Penh Post - National Road 4 toll fees nixed

National Road 4 toll fees nixed

A man receives a ticket and his change yesterday near Phnom Penh after paying a fare at a toll booth on National Road 4.
A man receives a ticket and his change yesterday near Phnom Penh after paying a fare at a toll booth on National Road 4. Hong Menea

National Road 4 toll fees nixed

Prime Minister Hun Sen yesterday abruptly scrapped toll fees for National Road 4, ending a controversial 15-year contract with the politically connected business AZ Distribution Co.

As of 12am today, drivers of cars, trucks and buses no longer need to pay at any of the four toll booths along the 210-kilometre Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville highway, the premier announced at a National Assembly plenary session yesterday.

“Even though this decision has not been signed, as the head of the royal government, I can declare beforehand that the government will cancel the contract over the problems with National Road 4,” Hun Sen said.

“I hope that cancellation of the contract and retaking control of the road will mean there will be no fees for cars travelling along this highway.”

Hun Sun said his decision was not influenced by the opposition, which has long criticised the contract, but was prompted after his previous edict on January 7, declaring families living along the highway would no longer have to pay toll fees, was ignored.

“Please do not [take political] gain,” he told the opposition.

“The decider is Hun Sen; the signer is also Hun Sen.”

AZ Distribution Co manager Van Dorn said the company – which charged 11,200 riel (about $2.80) for small cars and 45,000 riel for buses and trucks to make the entire trip – had “no problem” with the decision.

Doeun refused to reveal details of the amount of money the company collected and invested in the road.

“I cannot answer. Some years it was much, some years it was enough,” Van Doeun said.

Issued in 2001, the open-ended concession was listed as a build-operate-transfer contract despite the highway being built, and subsequently reconstructed, with US funds.

An hour before the announcement, Cambodia National Rescue Party lawmaker Son Chhay, who has lobbied against the AZ contract since it was issued in 2001, reiterated his criticisms before the plenary session.

“Granting these rights to AZ [Distribution] lacks transparency,” Chhay said, arguing the company had invested “very little” in its infrastructure.

AZ founder Ung Bun Hov, a former Cambodian People’s Party lawmaker who resigned as a government adviser last May, was unreachable.

Minister for Public Works and Transport Tram Iv Tek said the ministry would take over the highway’s maintenance and form a committee to settle AZ Distribution’s contract.

Iv Tek said he “could not remember” details of AZ’s contract, as the company’s reports were sent to the Finance Ministry, whose spokesman could not be reached.

The announcement came two weeks after the premier brought another private toll road, Veng Sreng Boulevard, back under government control, citing a slew of online complaints.

Additional reporting by Shaun Turton

MOST VIEWED

  • 12th Cambodia int’l film festival to see return of Hollywood star

    Phnom Penh is set to come alive with the magic of cinema as the highly anticipated 12th Cambodia International Film Festival (CIFF) takes centre stage. Boasting an impressive line-up of 188 films from 23 countries, including captivating shorts, feature films, documentaries and animation, the festival promises an

  • Bareknuckle champion wants Kun Khmer fighter

    Dave Leduc, who is the current openweight Lethwei boxing champion in Myanmar, has announced that he will travel to Cambodia this year to challenge SEA Games gold medallist Prum Samnang any time that is convenient, after their planned match later this month in Slovakia was

  • Struggling Battambang artist dreams of staging full-scale gallery exhibition

    Leav Kimchhoth, a 55-year-old artist from Battambang province, is a familiar face to locals and tourists alike on the streets of the riverside in Phnom Penh. The one-armed painter and illustrator often hawks his work near the night market on weekends and public holidays. He

  • Fresh Covid warnings as Thai hospital fills

    A senior health official reminds the public to remain vigilant, as neighbouring countries experience an increase in Covid-19 cases, with the latest surge appearing to be a result of the Omicron XBB.1.5 sub-variant. Or Vandine, secretary of state and spokeswoman for the Ministry of Health,

  • 1.4 billion dollar Phnom Penh-Bavet expressway due in four years

    The Government, through the Ministry of Public Works and Transport, has officially signed a public-private partnership agreement with a private company for the construction of a Phnom Penh-Bavet Expressway project that will connect the capital to Svay Rieng province. The budget for the project is

  • New Law on Taxation comes into effect

    Cambodia has enacted the eagerly-awaited new Law on Taxation, which aims to improve the national tax regime’s compliance with present and future international standards and economic conditions; encourage accountability, effectiveness and transparency in the collection process; and promote investment in the Kingdom. King Norodom