Vietnam will add 18 new routes, 1,528km in total length, to its national railway network by 2050, according to a draft planning for the 2021 – 2030 period, with a vision towards 2050.
The draft planning on railway development was crafted by the Ministry of Transport and submitted to the Prime Minister for approval.
Under the planning, the national railway network will have 25 major lines with total length of 6,409km. Seven of them are currently in use, namely the Hanoi – Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi – Lao Cai, Hanoi (Gia Lam Station) – Hai Phong, Hanoi (Dong Anh Station) – Thai Nguyen (Quan Trieu Station), Hanoi (Yen Vien Station) – Lang Son (Dong Dang Station), Kep – Chi Linh, and Kep – Luu Xa, which have combined length of 2,440km.
Construction will start or continue for major routes – the North-South high-speed railway, Bien Hoa – Vung Tau, Vung Ang – Tan Ap – Mu Gia, Di An – Loc Ninh, HCM City – Can Tho, Lao Cai – Hanoi – Hai Phong, and Hanoi – Dong Dang.
Over the next 10 years, priority will be given in terms of funding allocation to two sections of the North-South high-speed railway connecting Hanoi and Vinh, and HCM City and Nha Trang. Work on the Vinh – Da Nang section is expected to finish by 2040 and that of Da Nang – Nha Trang by 2050.
A number of intra- and inter-regional rail routes will also be developed by 2050 for both transport and tourism purposes.
The upgrade of the existing lines and construction of new ones to 2030 will cost an estimated 240 trillion VND (over 1 billion USD) sourced from both State and non-State budgets./.
