High-speed railway slated for Mekong Delta

November 13, 2013 | 15:20

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Vietnam has laid out plans to develop a high-speed railway between Ho Chi Minh City and Can Tho, the hub of the Mekong Delta, with an investment of $3.6 billion.

Vietnam’s Phuong Nam Institute of Science and Technology and American group EDES signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in Ho Chi Minh City on November 12 to establish a joint venture to conduct an initial feasibility study for the 1,435mm gauge railway to submit for government approval.

The planned 134km railway will travel at speeds around 20kmph and would include ten stations starting at Tan Kien in Ho Chi Minh City and passing through Long An, Tien Giang, and Vinh Long provinces before finishing at the Cai Rang station in Can Tho.

The project is projected to be carried out under the BOT (build-operate-transfer) model.

The Ministry of Transport has green lighted the Phuong Nam Institute of Science and Technology to do research for the project and asked it to work closely with transport consulting firm TEDI South, which has already developed some studies for such a railway.

The Mekong Delta consists of Can Tho and 12 provinces from Long An to Ca Mau and is home to 18 million people. It is responsible for 22 per cent of the country’s GDP and is the largest agriculture and aquaculture producer.

The roads between Ho Chi Minh City and Can Tho are suitable and there are currently no rail links. Other systems include the newly upgraded and international Can Tho Airport and the Saigon-Trung Luong Expressway. A new highway is planned for My Tho to Can Tho.

Vietnam still uses 900mm gauge railways built by the French during their colonial rule.

By By Tuong Thuy

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