Cat Linh-Ha Dong Railway Construction will Speed Up

Vietnam Transport Minister Dinh La Thang has said the construction of the Cat Linh-Ha Dong Railway Project should be speeded up so that commercial operations could begin by June 30, 2016.

Thang said at a meeting, held to review the progress of the urban skytrain project in Ha Noi on Thursday, that the Cat Linh-Ha Dong Railway Project Management Unit and contractors must adopt measures to help road users avoid the risk of accidents.

Le Kim Thanh, general director of the Railway Project Management Unit, said about % 58 of the project has been completed so far and % 50 of the project’s cost has been paid for.

Deputy Transport Minister Nguyen Hong Truong said the ministry has asked the main contractor to speed up the construction process and make necessary adjustments after a number of incidents occurred on the project.

To speed up the project’s progress, the transport ministry would send a group of people to work with the China Railway Sixth Group to check the preparation of model trains before transporting them to VietNam.

The Cat Linh-Ha Dong urban railway project broke ground on October 2011, and was expected to be finished by the end of 2015, with the trial phase set to begin in January 2016. But it has been delayed due to obstacles in site clearance and capital adjustment.

Project Properties and Project Cost
It was originally set to cost US$552 million, but that was revised to $892 million. The 13km project will have 12 stations and a depot. It will stretch from Cat Linh Street in Dong Da District to Yen Nghia Bus Station in Ha Dong District.