On July 26, Prime Minister Pham Minh asked the MOT to complete the proposal to establish a steering committee on high-speed rail projects as well as the establishment of an advisory panel comprised of leading railway experts to advise the steering committee.
Under the general plan, the north-south high-speed rail line will feature 1,435mm standard-gauge double tracks with a total length of 1,545 kilometres from Ngoc Hoi Station in Hanoi to Thu Thiem Station in Ho Chi Minh City.
In the initial stage until 2030, Vietnam will build two sections: Ha Noi-Vinh and Nha Trang-Ho Chi Minh City, while the remaining sections between Vinh and Nha Trang will be constructed after 2030.
Last May, Deputy Transport Minister Nguyen Danh Huy asked the project consultants to compare two plans for the north-south high-speed rail project: building a new line for passenger transport only and a new line for both passenger and freight transport.
In the first scenario, the new line is dedicated to passenger transport and the existing north-south railway will be upgraded and electrified for freight services.
In the second scenario, a new line will be built on the north-south axis featuring standard gauge and double tracks to carry both passengers and cargo.
Recently the consultants TEDI and CCTDI completed an early planning report, in which they proposed that the line should extend to Hanoi Station, which will serve both high-speed rail and urban rail lines.
The consultant cited experience from other countries where high-speed rail stations are usually located in the city centre such as Beijing (China), Berlin (Germany), Tokyo (Japan) and Paris (France).
They noted that if the terminal station is placed at Ngoc Hoi, which is about 10 kilometres from central Hanoi, high-speed rail services will become less attractive to passengers.
In addition, high-speed rail lines will run on dedicated tracks separated from other means of transport in the city, so they will not face the problems of the current national railway system.
