High-speed
railways and Vietnam's options
12:01
High-speed railways in countries around the world
currently run at a speed of 200-250km/hour. Vietnam plans to have a
high-speed railway system in the next 10 years, but so far it has not yet
been able to choose technology and train speed.
In the draft railway planning to
2030 with a vision to 2050, the Ministry of Transport proposed a new
investment plan for the North-South high-speed railway from now to 2040.
Accordingly, trains will run at a design speed of 350km/h, carrying only
passengers. The existing railway system will be upgraded to transport goods. In phase 1,
from now to 2032, Vietnam will invest in the Hanoi - Vinh and Nha Trang - Ho
Chi Minh City sections to put into operation in 2030. Total investment
capital for these segments only is more than VND561.5 trillion ($24.4
billion). However, the
Ministry of Planning and Investment recently proposed that the Ministry of
Transport consider upgrading the existing railway system to operate both
freight and passenger trains, with train speeds below 200km/h, and a total
investment of $26 billion. Relevant
agencies are considering the two plans to submit to the Government for
consideration before presenting to the National Assembly for approval. However, the
most popular train speed globally is still around 200-250 km/h. Some
countries like Japan, China, France are researching to increase train speed
to 400-500 km/h. Popular high-speed railway systems
Japan’s Shinkansen system: In 1964, the first
high-speed railway route in the world connected Tokyo to Osaka (Japan) with a
length of 515 km. At first, trains ran at a maximum speed of 210 km/h but the
speed increased to 285 km/h. The Shinkansen system stretches from Kagoshima in
Kyushu to Shin Hakodate-Hokuto in Hokkaido, with some segments designed to
operate at 320 km/h. The common speed throughout the Shinkansen system is 200
km/h. The Japan
Railway Technical Research Institute (RTRI) believes that the Shinkansen not
only has had a great impact on Japan's economy and society, but has also
paved the way for a series of technical innovations. Within more
than 50 years of operation, serving more than 10 billion passengers, the
Shinkansen high-speed rail network has never had an accident that caused
death or injury. This is considered the safest and busiest railway system in
the world. In 2019,
Japan tested trains running at 360 km/h - a record for Shinkansen trains. The
high-speed railway is one of Japan's national proudest achievements. It not
only has a strong impact on the Japanese people but also the whole world,
creating opportunities for railways in the world to innovate. France’s hi-speed railway system: the
country started construction of the 409km route from Paris - Sud-Est to Lyon
in 1977. The first segment opened in 1981 with a maximum train speed of 260
km/h. In 1989, France opened phase 1 of the Atlantique expressway. This is
the first route designed for trains to run at 300 km/h. Since 2007, TGV
trains have run at 320 km/h on new railway routes. China has the longest high-speed rail system in the world with
29,000 km stretching across the country. Chinese railways account for
two-thirds of the total global commercial high-speed rail length. China's
high-speed trains usually run at 300-350 km/h. When they carry both
passengers and cargo, the maximum speed is 200-250 km/h. This country plans
to increase the speed to 600 km/h after the electromagnetic train system is
successfully trialed this year.
Vietnam's choice Vietnam
currently has an outdated railway system. The construction of a modern
high-speed railway is an inevitable requirement. Deputy Transport Minister
Nguyen Ngoc Dong said that when choosing the plan to build a railway system
worth US$58.7 billion instead of US$26 billion with a speed of 200 km/h as
suggested by the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of
Transport considered a long-term project to increase the speed to 350 km/h. Upgrading
the existing railway to double track, gauge 1435mm, will face many
difficulties because it is almost all new construction. The cost of land
clearance is large, because the existing railways running through many urban
areas. In addition, transporting both passengers and cargo has a potential
risk of accidents, is inefficient, and is not in line with world trends. The
Ministry of Transport cited the report of the consultant, which says that
upgrading the current railway system as suggested by the Ministry of Planning
and Investment would need about $40 billion. Dang Quyet
Tien, Director of the Department of Corporate Finance of the Ministry of
Finance, said that the construction of a high-speed railway system will
create an impetus for the development of many industries such as construction
and high-tech development. Vu Anh Minh,
Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Vietnam Railways Corporation,
acknowledged that the importance of high-speed rail investment is not the
value of the investment capital but the effectiveness of the project to
decide on whether to invest. If the investment efficiency is high, then $100
billion is worthy. VNN |
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