Proposal for 350 km/h high-speed passenger railway

Hanoi: The Ministry of Transport has proposed a 350 km/h high-speed railway to be used to transport passengers and freight when needed, while the existing line will be converted to freight.

The information was stated at the second meeting of the Steering Committee for the construction and implementation of the investment policy project for the high-speed railway on the North-South axis and important national railway projects on the morning of March 26, chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha.

Mr. Vuong Dinh Khanh, former Deputy General Director of Vietnam Railway Corporation, proposed carefully calculating the plan to use the entire existing railway line only for freight trains.

The proposal has been discussed at many meetings. In November 2023, the Ministry of Transport asked for opinions from ministries and sectors on three scenarios for the North-South high-speed railway. Two of them have a design speed of 350 km/h, and one has a speed of 200-250 km/h. None of the scenarios have been finalized yet.

"Currently, there is no high-speed railway line in the world with a design speed of 350 km/h that can transport a mixture of passengers and goods," the Ministry of Planning and Investment once commented.

Three high-speed rail scenarios. Graphics: Dang Hieu — Three high-speed rail scenarios. Graphics: *Dang Hieu*

Regarding economic efficiency, the Ministry of Transport, the General Statistics Office, and the Ministry of Planning and Investment recently assessed that the North-South High-Speed Railway Project could contribute about 1 percentage point to GDP growth each year in the 2025-2037 period.

According to former Deputy Minister of Transport La Ngoc Khue, in addition to the goal of transporting passengers, the high-speed railway must increase its market share in long-distance freight transport and "connect with international railways". This will reduce logistics costs - the intermediary step in transporting goods.

Although inland waterway and sea transport have advantages in terms of cost, the time is long and loading and unloading is repeated many times. Therefore, this is a great opportunity for the railway industry to increase its market share in long-distance freight transport, creating competitiveness for the economy, Mr. Khue analyzed.

Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyen Danh Huy said that important national railway projects are large-scale, have complex technical standards, and pass through many localities, so they need to be carefully considered. Furthermore, railway projects bring great economic efficiency but the financial efficiency of the projects is not high. Therefore, he suggested that the state budget should play a leading role and prioritize the allocation of resources for investment.

Listening to opinions, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha concluded that an industrialized and modernized country needs to develop high-speed railways to reduce logistics costs and improve the competitiveness of the economy.

The Deputy Prime Minister requested the Ministry of Transport to receive, explain and clarify the opinions. From there, the Ministry will complete the investment plan for high-speed railway lines to ensure synchronization and unification of standards and regulations from design, infrastructure, vehicles, information systems and operations.

"It is necessary to retain central stations in large, iconic cities while ensuring safety corridors by combining them with elevated and underground routes," the Deputy Prime Minister noted, asking the Ministry of Transport to learn from the experience of operating high-speed railways combining passenger and cargo transport around the world. The Ministry also needs to clarify plans for capital mobilization, investment phases, and organizational models for management and operation.

Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha at the meeting. Photo: VGP — Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha at the meeting. Photo: *VGP*

Previously, the Politburo's conclusion set the target of completing the approval of the investment policy for the North-South high-speed railway project by 2025 and starting construction before 2030. The Hanoi - Vinh and Ho Chi Minh City - Nha Trang high-speed railway sections are given priority to start construction in the 2026-2030 period; striving to complete the entire North-South high-speed railway route before 2045.

Pham Du

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