Proposing to the Prime Minister to revive the nearly 10,000 billion Hanoi - Quang Ninh railway

TPO - After more than 10 years of delay, the Yen Vien - Pha Lai - Ha Long - Cai Lan railway with a total investment of nearly 10,000 billion VND is being proposed by the Ministry of Construction to the Prime Minister to restart, aiming to complete before 2030.

The Yen Vien - Pha Lai - Ha Long - Cai Lan railway project was approved by the Prime Minister in 2004, using government bond capital with a total investment of 7,663 billion VND. The 131 km long route, connecting Yen Vien station ( Hanoi ) to Cai Lan port (Quang Ninh), is designed with a dual gauge (1,435 mm and 1,000 mm), with an operating speed of 120 km/h for passenger trains and 80 km/h for freight trains.

If completed, travel time from Ha Long to Yen Vien will be only 1.5 - 2 hours, opening a corridor for transporting large volumes of passengers and goods at low cost between Hanoi and Quang Ninh .

The project is divided into 4 independent sub-projects, started in 2008 and expected to be completed in 2011. However, due to the policy of cutting public investment according to Resolution 11/2011/NQ-CP, the project was suspended from 2011, with disbursed capital of 4,322 billion VND, reaching 56% of the total investment. By the time of suspension, Sub-project 1 had been completed and put into operation; Sub-projects 2 and 3 were still under construction; Sub-project 4 was stopped at the design stage.

Current status of Yen Vien - Pha Lai - Ha Long - Cai Lan railway. Photo: Hoang Duong.

According to Conclusion 49-KL/TW of the Politburo and the National Railway Network Planning 2021 - 2030, the Yen Vien - Pha Lai - Ha Long - Cai Lan route is identified as a key project that needs to be completed before 2030. "This is an important political and legal basis to reactivate the project, connecting the two growth poles of Hanoi - Quang Ninh," the leader of the Ministry of Construction emphasized.

The Ministry of Construction (formerly the Ministry of Transport) has directed the Railway Project Management Board to review documents, remove obstacles and propose a restart plan suitable to the new situation.

According to the Vietnam Railway Authority, when the project was established in 2004, the main objective was to transport goods from Yunnan (China) through Cai Lan port - which was then planned as a deep-water port in the North. However, the current planning identifies Lach Huyen port (Hai Phong) as the international gateway, while Cai Lan is redirected to urban development - seaport services.

The Hanoi - Bac Ninh - Hai Duong (now Hai Phong City) - Quang Ninh corridor is developing strongly in tourism and services, causing the demand for passenger transport to increase more than that of goods. Therefore, the project's function needs to be adjusted to prioritize passenger transport.

The reinvestment plan agreed upon by the Ministry of Construction to be submitted to the Government for consideration includes: Maintaining the Yen Vien - Lim section (Sub-project 4) as it still meets the conditions for exploitation; Continuing to invest in the Lim - Pha Lai section and upgrading the old Pha Lai - Ha Long route, ensuring smooth traffic from Hanoi to Cai Lan.

The Ministry proposed to change the track gauge from a hybrid track to a standard gauge of 1,435 mm, making use of purchased materials; surplus materials will be handed over to Vietnam Railways Corporation to serve the maintenance of existing routes.

The Ministry of Construction has proposed to convert the Yen Vien - Pha Lai - Ha Long - Cai Lan railway from a narrow gauge to a standard gauge of 1,435 mm. Photo: Hoang Duong.

The total new investment is estimated at VND9,989 billion, an increase of more than VND2,300 billion compared to the original, of which the additional capital required is VND5,560 billion. The Ministry of Construction has reported the capital demand for the 2026-2030 period to the Ministry of Finance for synthesis and submission to the Prime Minister for consideration.

Notably, the Ministry of Construction also clarified the connection between this project and the Hanoi - Quang Ninh high-speed railway proposed by Vingroup. Under the direction of Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha, the Ministry has instructed the enterprise to complete the dossier and coordinate with the Vietnam Railway Authority to include the new route in the national railway network planning.

If the Hanoi - Quang Ninh high-speed route is approved, the Yen Vien - Pha Lai - Ha Long - Cai Lan route will be rerouted to serve freight transport. Conversely, if the high-speed project is not feasible, the Ministry of Construction will continue to invest in completing the entire existing route to exploit passengers as planned.

Thus, after more than a decade of "sleeping", the Yen Vien - Pha Lai - Ha Long - Cai Lan railway is facing the opportunity to revive in the new traffic picture - where the goal is not only to complete an infrastructure project, but also to connect sustainably between the two growth poles of the North, Hanoi and Quang Ninh.

Source: https://tienphong.vn/de-xuat-thu-tuong-viec-hoi-sinh-duong-sat-gan-10000-ty-ha-noi-quang-ninh-post1788221.tpo