Urban railway project No.1 in Hanoi, which will connect Yen Vien with Ngoc Hoi with a length of 26 km, is going to be constructed and will have strong impact on the capital’s urban railway and national railway, the government portal reported.Railway Line No.1 is considered to be the most important of the urban railway network in the capital city because it will not only link other urban railway lines (No.2, 3, 6) but also to the national railway and high-speed rail in the future.
Hanoi accelerates procedures for official operation of Cat Linh-Ha Dong urban railway. Photo: Huy Hung
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Specifically, after the project is completed, the Yen Vien-Ngoc Hoi route will serve both national passenger trains and Railway No.1 trains. During the construction process, the Railway Project Management Board still has to ensure that the current national railway operates incessantly and safely.
Currently, the Ministry of Transport is restarting the project by preparing to build the first phase of Ngoc Hoi complex, with total investment of VND19,046 billion (US$819 million).
Ngoc Hoi complex - the largest depot in Vietnam
Le Van, head of Project 3 office under the Railway Project Management Board, said the Ngoc Hoi complex to the south of Hanoi has been built as a transit station and the largest depot in Vietnam.
To prevent congestion in the inner city, in the future, the Hanoi central station will be moved to Ngoc Hoi, and the existing Hanoi station will be turned into a transit station, Van added.
Hanoi to have ten urban railway routes
Urban railway routes will be a backbone for the capital’s transportation system, contributing to Hanoi’s comprehensive development.
According to a prime minister-approved transport plan to 2030, with vision to 2050, for Hanoi, the city will be home to ten urban railway routes with a total length of 417.8 km.
Route 1 and 2A are invested by the Ministry of Transport. Route 1 has basically technical design completed. Its first phase will be invested in 2017 - 2025, while the second phase is scheduled for 2030.
Route 2A, named Cat Linh - Ha Dong, having 13km in length, has completed 98% of construction volume and had 88% of equipment installed. It began a trial run on September 20. It is expected that the urban railway 2A will be handed over to Hanoi for operation and ready for commercial operation before the upcoming 2019 Tet holiday.
Hanoi city is also the investor of two urban railway projects No.2 and No.3. The city sets the target that from now until 2020, the routes of Nam Thang Long - Tran Hung Dao (11.5km) and Tran Hung Dao - Thuong Dinh (5.9km) will be completed.
Besides, Hanoi’s remaining six urban railway routes are planned from now to 2021, 2016 and 2030. Details on funding sources are not available.
The Hanoi station-Nhon railway route, funded with French official development assistance, is set to be completed by 2021.
Hanoi’s transport plan to 2030, with vision to 2050 has fully identified the city’s urban railway network. Once completed, the urban railway routes will serve as a backbone for the capital’s transportation system.
