HCMC – The HCMC Department of Transport has proposed that a 33-kilometer section of the HCMC-Can Tho express railway in HCMC should have elevated tracks to facilitate the project’s execution.
At a meeting between the Ministry of Transport and localities on the express railway on June 17, deputy director of the HCMC Department of Transport Phan Cong Bang said the express railway was designed to be 174 kilometers long with 13 stations and pass through six localities—Binh Duong, HCMC, Long An, Tien Giang, Vinh Long and Can Tho.
The project will start at the An Binh Station in Binh Duong’s Di An City and end at the Can Tho Station in Can Tho City’s Cai Rang District.
Earlier, the section in HCMC had been planned to include a 12-kilometer elevated section.
Bang said HCMC had many urban and residential areas, causing difficulties in regulating traffic in intersections between the express railway and roads. Therefore, the city proposed that all 33 kilometers of the express railway section in the city should be elevated.
Despite a possible higher cost, the solution will be easier for execution and bring long-term effectiveness, Bang added.
HCMC Chairman Phan Van Mai said the preparation of the site, trains and stations should be focused. The consulting unit of the project should determine which packages will use the State budget, put up for investment attraction or use the revenue from the land around stations.
At the meeting, Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyen Ngoc Dong asked the localities through which the express railway will pass through, and the consulting unit to pay more attention to the location of stations, especially cargo ones, to connect with cargo resources and logistics centers.
A representative of the Tedi South – Tricc – Tedi consultant consortium said the prefeasibility study for the project was expected to be completed this year. The Ministry of Transport will later report the project to the Government and then the National Assembly and ask for its approval in 2024.
The HCMC-Can Tho express railway project requires an estimated investment of over VND169 trillion and a cleared site of 916 hectares. The project will be a double-track line, allowing a maximum speed of 190 kilometers per hour for passenger trains and 120 kilometers per hour for cargo trains.
Once the railway is completed, it will take 75-80 minutes to travel from HCMC to Can Tho, instead of the current four to five hours.
