Over 40 workers were seen painting and fixing the old pillars and beams of the Long Bien Bridge on October 5. The work is expected to be completed this November.
All the 4,600-metre-long handrail on both sides of the bridge was covered in two layers of rust inhibiting paint.
Some 1,000 wooden rail track beams along the bridge need replacing.
According to a representative from the upgrading team of the Long Bien Bridge, they were given over VND 6 billion (USD 260,869) for the bridge upgrade work in 2021.
"With this modest funding, we can only restore some parts of the bridge which have been heavily damaged over the time," he said. "The upgrade costs for the whole bridge are very big and we can’t afford it at present.”
Long Bien Bridge spanning 1,691 metres across the Red River was designed by the French in 1898. After more than 100 years in use, all the steel structures of the bridge have become rusty.
