Reconstruction of the road between Battambang and Pailin is expected to start by the end of the year as tourism to former Khmer Rouge battlefields in the area increases.
“I have been given permission from the government to find a company and rebuild Road 10,” Pailin Governor Y Chhien said. He said a company has been found, but he declined to name it until the contract is finalized.
The company is currently measuring the road to determine the total budget of the project, but Y Chhien estimated that the road will probably cost around $40 million. Road tolls will help pay for it, he said.
Pailin, a former Khmer Rouge stronghold that until 1996 remained isolated from the rest of the country, has repeatedly asked the government to help rebuild the road, saying an easier route to Battambang would improve living conditions for those in the area.
Officials also say a better road would encourage more tourists to visit the area, which was the scene of heavy fighting during the 1980s.
Plans for a joint US-Cambodian road project were scrapped after the July 1997 factional fighting. But earlier this year former US ambassador Kent Wiedemann said the US would help rebuild the road if Cambodia held free and fair commune council elections, said Mei Mekk, Pailin Cabinet chief. The US has yet to offer any money, he said.
San Mom, a tourist from Phnom Penh, said, “I will go to Pailin when the road is good. It is easy to go to Thailand via Pailin because the international checkpoint is closer than going through Poipet.”
