VietNamNet Bridge – The transport ministry is in favour of the project to upgrade the Ha Noi Railway Station, as well as its surrounding areas, and to concretise the capital city’s general planning, said Deputy Minister Nguyen Ngoc Dong.

Ha Noi Railway Station, the oldest railway station in Viet Nam with more than 100 years of history. - VNS Photo

“The project does not mention building high rises inside the station, so there will be no impact of the high rises on the station,” he said. 

He added that the planning was not only for the Ha Noi Railway Station but also for the whole area covering 98ha, including Van Mieu and Van Chuong area. The Ha Noi Railway Station makes up only 17ha. 

Dong said that the project to upgrade the Ha Noi Railway Station was relevant to the urban planning of the capital city. The ministry has requested professional agencies in railway and road to study and give feedback on the project. 

“However, the transport infrastructure of Ha Noi and HCM City is overloaded. The land spared for the transport infrastructure in these cities accounts for only 7 per cent to 8 per cent; meanwhile, the standard for a developed city must be between 16 and 26 per cent. It must be even more than 26 per cent for major cities, such as Ha Noi and HCM City. 

“We will consider and study the density of roads per 1,000 residents in the 98-ha planning area,” he said. 

“As a transport management agency, the ministry will additionally study the national transport planning, which consists of planning on the Ha Noi railway. The Ha Noi Railway Station is still regarded as a central station. In the future, it may be part of an international route,” he said. 

The high speed railway will run into the Ha Noi Railway Station in the future. We must count the density of this railway into the general density of Ha Noi. The ministry will give more comments on the parking areas and the transport organisation, Dong said. 

“We will give comments to the Ha Noi authorities on how large a space should be spared for the socialisation projects at the Ha Noi Railway Station,” he added. 

According to the project plan of the Japanese consultants, the current location of the Ha Noi Railway Station will be totally maintained with the station’s front part facing the Tran Hung Dao Street. 

The project to upgrade the capital’s old railway station and the surrounding areas into a Japanese-style modern urban depot surrounded by buildings of up to 70 storeys was approved by the Ha Noi People’s Committee last month. It will be carried out in stages and will be completed by 2035.

The plan calls for six zones of high-rise buildings of between 40 storeys to 70 storeys for financial and media purposes, a railway station, and three areas of low-rise buildings with a park, international trade zone and a new lifestyle zone.

The project will cover a total area of 98ha in the districts of Dong Da, Hoan Kiem, Ba Dinh and Hai Ba Trung. The total investment capital is estimated at VND23.8 trillion (US$1.03 billion), to be prepared by the city’s Department of Planning and Architecture in consultation with Japan’s Nikken Sekkei Civil Engineering Ltd (NSC). 

VNS