Proposal to build a self-driving train line running on Ho Chi Minh City canals, nearly 30km long

TPO - A business has just proposed building a self-driving train line running on Ho Chi Minh City canals with a length of 29.9 km, with a total investment of about 20,000 billion VND.

The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport has just sent a document requesting the Department of Planning and Architecture and the City Urban Railway Management Board to provide comments on the proposal to build an automatic elevated train line from Tan Son Nhat airport - city center - Dam Sen Cultural Park.

According to the proposal from the enterprise, the above project has a total length of 29.9 km and a total investment of about 20,000 billion VND. The automatic train line with a fixed guidance system is a type of urban transport with an average capacity (passenger), running on tires, this system was developed by Japan.

The project is expected to be invested in three phases including:

Section 1: Tan Son Nhat Airport - Nguyen Kieu Islet: 12.7km running on Nhieu Loc - Thi Nghe Canal.

Section 2: Nguyen Kieu Islet - Ba Tang Bridge, District 8: 5.7km running along the Double Canal.

Section 3: Ba Tang Bridge, District 8 - Hoang Van Thu and Ut Tich intersection: 11.5km along Tan Hoa Canal, Lac Long Quan Street.

Proposal to build a self-driving train line running on Ho Chi Minh City canals, nearly 30km long, photo 1

A section of Nhieu Loc - Thi Nghe canal. Photo: Contributor

According to the Department of Transport of Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City is currently organizing the establishment of the city's master plan until 2040, with a vision to 2060. During the process of reviewing and contributing opinions on the city's master plan, the Department of Transport will coordinate with the Department of Planning and Architecture to review, research and update the city's master plan if the project is feasible.

Meanwhile, according to the proposal from the enterprise, the self-driving train running on the canal will solve the traffic congestion in the central area and Tan Son Nhat airport. At the same time, it is located entirely on the Nhieu Loc - Thi Nghe canal, Saigon river, Ben Nghe canal, Doi canal, Tam Hoa canal and Lac Long Quan street, so there is absolutely no problem with land clearance.

In addition, the self-driving elevated train will directly solve the traffic congestion problem at Tan Son Nhat airport area with the outstanding advantage of the self-driving train compared to the monorail being the ability to change lanes flexibly, very convenient for route development.

The steel lines should be mass-produced at the factory, allowing for quick construction, with the project expected to be completed in about five years. The main stations will be connected to the metro system as designed.

With the above advantages, the enterprise proposed that the Ho Chi Minh City authorities consider adding this elevated railway line to the planning to have a basis for implementation.