The Government of Vietnam is targeting to add nine new railway routes totalling 2,362 km to the current rail network by 2030 as part of its effort to update its ageing transportation network. The total capital needed for these projects is approximately VND240 trillion which will be funded by the state budget as well as private investors.
According to the government’s authorised plan for the 2021-2030 period, one of the new routes will run from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City, totalling 1,545 km. In the north, three routes will be added to connect Hanoi with Ha Long and the port city of Hai Phong. Another line will run along the Hanoi’s eastern border. An additional route connecting Vung Ang Port in Ha Tinh Province to the Laos border is planned for the central region of Vietnam.
In the south, four new rail routes will be added, one of which will connect Bien Hoa town in Dong Nai Province with Vung Tau Province. HCMC will be connected to Can Tho City and the Cambodian border through two routes while the final route will run from HCMC’s Thu Thiem Station to Dong Nai’s Long Thanh International Airport.
By 2030, Vietnam’s railway sector aims to transport 11.8 million tonnes of goods per year and transport 460 million passengers annually. The country is expected to have 25 rail routes totalling 6,354 km by 2050. Currently, Vietnam has seven operational rail routes with a total distance of 2,440 km.
