Study on Procedures for Assigning the Governing Agency of the Railway Project Connecting Long Thanh Airport

Regarding the proposal of the Ministry of Construction on studying the implementation of the Thu Thiem – Long Thanh Railway Project connecting Long Thanh International Airport, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha has given instructions on the assignment of the governing agency for this project.

The Thu Thiem – Long Thanh Railway has a total length of about 42 km. Illustrative photo

Specifically, in Official Dispatch No. 8886/VPCP-CN (dated September 19, 2025) of the Government Office, Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha requested the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee to urgently receive the documents and research results related to the project from the Ministry of Construction, and proactively study investment plans so that implementation can begin as soon as conditions under the law are met.

The Ministry of Construction is to urgently complete the adjustment of the railway network planning for the 2021–2030 period, with a vision to 2050, and finish this work by October 2025.

Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha also requested the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee and the Dong Nai Provincial People’s Committee, based on the provisions of Clause 1, Article 30 of the Law on Public Investment, to urgently review and study the necessary procedures (such as adjusting provincial planning, reporting to the provincial People’s Council to reach consensus on the governing agency of the project…), and report to the Prime Minister to assign the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee as the project’s governing agency in accordance with due process, procedures, and authority.

According to Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha, the policy of assigning the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee to study and implement the Thu Thiem – Long Thanh Railway Project was already outlined in the Scheme on Developing the Urban Railway Network System in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to 2035, approved by the Politburo in Document No. 12766-CV/TW (dated December 27, 2024) of the Party Central Committee Office, and in the Prime Minister’s instructions in Notice No. 43/TB-VPCP (dated February 15, 2025) of the Government Office.

Previously, in Document No. 8290/BXD-KHTC (dated August 13, 2025) sent to Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha, the Ministry of Construction recommended that the Prime Minister assign the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee to take the lead in working and reaching consensus with the Dong Nai Provincial People’s Committee on designating the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee as the governing agency of the Thu Thiem – Long Thanh Railway Project, as a basis for the Prime Minister’s decision to ensure consistency and synchronization in construction, operation, and the optimal exploitation of land surrounding the project area.

The Thu Thiem – Long Thanh railway project, currently under study, is an urban rail line approximately 42 kilometers long. It is designed as a double-track line with a standard gauge of 1,435 mm and a design speed of 120 km/h. The line will include 20 stations and serve suburban and intercity passengers traveling from Ho Chi Minh City and Dong Nai Province to Long Thanh Airport. The project has a preliminary total investment of nearly USD 3.4 billion.

By Pham Tung - Translated by Trieu Ngan, Minho