CT Group recently proposed building a railway line of about 280 km, starting at Thu Thiem Station in Ho Chi Minh City and ending at Dat Mui Station in Ca Mau. The proposed route would pass through six localities: Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Thap, Vinh Long, Can Tho, An Giang and Ca Mau.
Under the proposal submitted to the construction ministry, the railway would be built as a double-track line with standard gauge of 1,435 mm and a design speed of 200-250 km/h, with further studies suggested for a 350 km/h option to align with the national rail network.
The project would be implemented in two phases. Phase one would prioritise the 160 km section from Thu Thiem to Cai Rang stations in Can Tho. Phase two would complete the remaining 120 km from Cai Rang to Dat Mui.
In its response, the construction ministry said the Ho Chi Minh City-Can Tho railway is a newly planned national railway project with a very large scale and investment requirement. The ministry has assigned the My Thuan Project Management Board to prepare a pre-feasibility study.
At present, the ministry is studying a pre-feasibility report for the Ho Chi Minh City-Can Tho section, with the starting point at An Binh Station in Ho Chi Minh City and the endpoint at Can Tho Station in Can Tho City. This section would be 175.2 km long.
Under the proposal being prepared by the My Thuan Project Management Board, the line would be a mixed passenger and freight railway, standard gauge, electrified, with a design speed of about 160 km/h.
Phase one, before 2030, would see the construction of a single-track line of 175 km, with preliminary investment estimated at VND 173.64 trillion (about USD 7.16 billion). Phase two would upgrade the entire line to double track, with an estimated investment of around VND 64.97 trillion (about USD 2.7 billion).
As for the Can Tho-Ca Mau section, the government has approved its inclusion in the adjusted national railway network plan for the 2021-2030 period, with a vision to 2050. According to the planning documents, passenger and freight demand on this route is expected to emerge in the period up to 2050.
