Gov't announces road maintenance fee

Under the decree, the lowest rate of the Road Maintenance Fund, VND180,000 (US $8.5) per month, will be levied on under-12-seat cars and under-2-ton trucks, while the highest rate, VND1.44 million (US $69) per month, will be applied to over-27-tonne trucks.

As for motorbikes, the fee will be VND80,000-180,000 (US $4-9) per year, depending on cylinder volumes.

The Road Maintenance Fund will be managed at both central and local levels, with 65% of automobile fees paid to the central coffer while the remainder will go to the local budget. As for the motorcycle fee collection, each locality will manage the fund on its own.

The central fund will be spent on national highway maintenance while local funds will be used for upgrading roads in the locality.

It is calculated that the fee collections will total VND6 trillion ($285.7 million) per year, according to the Ministry of Transport.