March 4, 2021
National Road 48’s rehabilitation project closer to March start
Sok Chan / Khmer Times

The quality rehabilitation project that will connect National Road 4 to Koh Kong province is due to begin this month, according to a senior official from the Ministry of Public Works and Transport (MPWT).

MPWT’s spokesperson Vasim Sorya said the project is now in the bidding stage and once that is complete, the ministry will send on documents for approval by its Korean partner.

The rehabilitation of National Road 48 is being funded by a loan from the Korean government. It will connect the 150 kilometre National Road 4 to Koh Kong province. The project will replace the double bituminous surface treatment (DBST) road surface to an asphalt concrete (AC) type of higher quality. It is being undertaken to boost transportation infrastructure, economic growth, facilitate local commuting and reduce poverty as a government priority measure.
https://www.khmertimeskh.com/820393/nat ... rch-start/

That road has been under construction or repair for literally 20+ years.

New airport= new road

Tomorrow morning, Samdech Techo HE Presides Over the Groundbreaking Ceremony for National Road No. 48
Appeared 2 minutes ago
On Sunday, January 2, 2022
By Sophal Tuon

Samdech Akka Moha Sena Padei Techo HE, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia, will preside over the groundbreaking ceremony for the 148-meter-long National Road No. 48 connecting Sihanoukville to Koh Kong province with a total budget of $US 65.14.M, using concessional loans from the Government of the Republic of Korea, together with the Royal Government's contribution for impact work and unexploded ordnance.

Senior Minister Sun Chanthol, Minister of Public Works and Transport, said that the construction project to upgrade the quality of National Road No. 48 has a total length of 148 kilometers, starting from the intersection with National Road No. 4 at km 141 + 750 in O'Chrov village, Sre Ambel District, up to Khemarak Phoumin City, Koh Kong Province.
This road has 5 intersections that will be modified, including: Chamkar Luong intersection, Sre Sre salt intersection, the access point to the junction of Kirisakor, the intersection of the access road to the dam, and the intersection of the access road to Koh Kong Airport.

The project will take 32 months to complete and is scheduled for completion in June 2024. It will be built by the Korean group ILSUNG & HANIL Joint Venture and is technically supervised by KCI & KECC Joint Venture.

It should be reminded that National Road No. 48 was inaugurated once on May 14, 2008. At that time, the road was built with two layers of asphalt (DBST) with two lanes, a total length of 150 km, built by a Thai company under a loan from the Thai government. The Royal Government of Thailand also provided grants to build four bridges.
Well, according to officials, the two-lane (DBST) road has an average life of 5 to 8 years, if properly maintained and not overloaded, hence the decision to rebuild this national road. The two lanes built during that period were based on the small number of all types of freight traffic and passers-by, which totaled just over 500 vehicles per day at the time.

According to Senior Minister Sun Chanthol, the current traffic on National Road 48 has increased significantly since then, with a total of about 3,339 vehicles per day, including about 1,962 vehicles and 1,377 motorcycles. In addition, coupled with economic growth, increased trade, investment and tourism activities in Cambodia's coastal areas, National Road 48 has to be rebuilt with seven layers of reinforced concrete, and 25 cm thick reinforced concrete pavement at the intersections, with widened lanes, and storm drains to allow run-off.

Senior Minister Sun Chanthol stated that National Road No. 48 is an important infrastructure of the Second Economic Pole, which includes: Sihanoukville, Kep, Kampot and Koh Kong provinces, which are industrial, eco-tourism and coastal areas.
This road connects with National Road 10, which is under construction, and connects Pursat, Battambang and Pailin provinces to the coast of Cambodia, and this road will be considered as a potential economic artery of Cambodia, facilitating communication and trade within the country, especially the transport of goods to and from the deep-sea port in Sihanoukville.

National Road 48 will further boost the potential of Koh Kong, as well as Kirisakor, a major tourist destination in southwestern Cambodia, and will boost economic development in areas bordering neighboring countries such as Thailand. It will contribute to attracting investors and boosting exports in the four special economic zones along the route. In addition, this line is also part of the ASEAN Highway 123 and the southern coastal corridor of the Greater Mekong Subregion GMS (R10), which connects Cambodia to Thailand.
By: Nary
https://www.kampucheathmey.com/local-news/256337/

Koh Kong to Have More Special Economic Zones
AKP Phnom Penh, January 03, 2022 --

Prime Minister Samdech Akka Moha Sena Padei Techo HE has expressed his hope that Koh Kong, a coastal province in Cambodia, will have more special economic zones in the future to boost the economic growth.

Addressing to the groundbreaking ceremony for upgrading the National Road 48 project with a total length of 148 kilometres from O’ Chrov to Khemarak Phoumin city, Koh Kong province, under the concessional loan from the S. Korean government, held in Sre Ambel district this morning, Samdech Techo HE said the number of special economic zones in Koh Kong will be not less than other provinces, including Preah Sihanouk.
- AKP