North-South high-speed rail construction to begin in 2028

It is awaiting approval from the Communist Party Politburo and the National Assembly, Minister of Transport Nguyen Van The said at a meeting Monday.

It will begin with the construction of the sections from Hanoi to Vinh and from HCMC to Nha Trang at a total cost of VND112 trillion ($4.93 billion).

When the 1.435-meter gauge route is complete, the existing one-meter gauge tracks will be used exclusively for cargo transport.

The high-speed railroad will run 1,545 kilometers and have a maximum speed of 320 kilometers per hour.

It will be a key transport project of the future, and provinces need to cooperate with the ministry to develop urban areas along the route.

Vietnam currently has seven main railway routes running 2,440 kilometers. The government plans to build nine new ones by 2030 with a total length of 2,362 kilometers, including the North-South line.

By 2050, it hopes to have a total of 25 routes running 6,354 kilometers.