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Laos
Index
Laos had a minimal road network in the early 1990s. By
1991 the
country's total road length was about 13,970 kilometers,
an
increase of just 22 percent over 1976. Of the total
length, 24
percent, or 3,353 kilometers, is paved and 30 percent
gravel; the
remaining roads are trails unusable during the rainy
season.
Route 13, a main north-south road, was built under
French
colonial rule. The highway parallels the Mekong and
extends from
the Cambodian border to Louangphrabang; the quality of the
road
varies over its length. Together with a few transmountain
roads,
Route 13 connects Laos with Vietnam and provides a
rudimentary
national road system. In addition, there are three
east-west roads,
Routes 7, 8, and 9, which are linked to Routes 7, 8, and 9
in
Vietnam to facilitate access to Vietnamese seaports
(see
fig. 7).
In the late 1960s, China constructed a network of paved
roads
in northern Laos, linking most of the northern provincial
capitals
and for the first time facilitating motorized
transportation across
this region. These roads enabled government officials to
reach some
hitherto remote areas of the country, which helped begin
the
process of national integration that continues in the
1990s. These
roads were maintained in reasonably good repair into the
1990s,
providing an important new means of increased intervillage
communication and movement of market goods, as well as a
locale for
additional settlements. However, as of 1993, the link
between this
network and Louangphrabang was, a 100-kilometer stretch of
dirt
track passable only during the dry season.
During the 1990s, all major routes in the center and
south are
being improved and/or surfaced, and a larger network of
feeder
roads is gradually being constructed by provincial
governments.
Development of these roads will facilitate a greater
government
presence at the village level and easier travel by
villagers to
district and provincial centers. Such improved
transportation will
also assist villagers seeking medical care and those
sending
children to school at district centers. Improved
transportation may
also be an additional stimulus to villagers looking for
wage labor
outside the village; tribal groups in northern Laos have
engaged in
seasonal labor in northern Thailand since at least the
1930s.
As roads improve and marketing networks expand, the
government
has encouraged commercial production for trade and export.
As a
result, the independence and relative isolation of lowland
villages
has been reduced. Travel, whether for visiting or
marketing--
particularly the extensive market network developed as a
result of
the long-standing opium trade--or because of military
conscription,
broadens the outlook of villagers and makes then aware of
the
relationships between Laos and its neighbors, of national
policy
issues, and of the possibility of a different material
standard of
living. Lao in lowland villages travel by oxcart over
level
terrain, or on foot. The steep mountains and lack of roads
have
caused upland ethnic groups to rely entirely on pack
baskets and
pack horses for transportation. Wheeled vehicles
traditionally have
not been used. Travel in most areas is still difficult and
expensive, and most villagers travel only limited
distances if at
all.
Despite the fact that the road network is the backbone
of the
transportation network, it had received very little
maintenance
work prior to 1985. The protracted war and period of
government
reorganization, limited financial resources, and lack of
maintenance equipment have contributed to its
deterioration, with
serious consequences throughout the economy, including
hindering
domestic and foreign trade, discouraging foreign
investors, and
slowing domestic revenue collection.
In early 1990, an agreement was signed with Thailand
and
Australia for the construction of the 750-meter Friendship
Bridge--
which opened in April 1994--across the Mekong River,
linking
Thailand and Laos by road for the first time. As a result,
tourism
is expected to increase dramatically and freight transport
costs to
decrease, facilitating regional trade.
Data as of July 1994
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