As Vietnam tries to modernize its transportation systems and increase communication with its northern ally, it has announced plans to begin work on two high-speed road tasks connecting it to China by 2030.
According to a statement from the Ministry of Planning and Investment on April 9, one line is scheduled to work from northern Haiphong and Quang Ninh to the border with Yunnan province in China. The other is planned to extend southward in southwestern China from Hanoi to the area around Guangxi.
According to local news channel VnExpress, both lines will form part of the north-south high-speed road course. By 2030, work on the$ 70 billion project, which connects northern Hanoi to the southern city Ho Chi Minh, is also scheduled to begin, despite difficulties brought on by a lack of government support and financing.
Vietnam sent its officers to work with Taiwanese railroad companies earlier this month, and the country said it was attempting to learn from China to create its second high-speed railroad network.
Vietnam’s largest trading partner is China, which is a significant importer for the South Eastern nation’s manufacturing sector. Trade between the two nations increased by 22 % in the first quarter of 2024 from the previous quarter to US$ 43. 6 billion, according to Taiwanese government statistics.
The two nations are currently connected via a network of roads and two outdated railroad lines. These are the Hanoi-Pingxiang-Nanning column, built in 1940. The other is the traditional Vietnam-Yunnan range, first constructed by the French at the start of the 20th century.
Vietnam is not the only objective of China ’s high-speed road interests. A semi-high-speed Laos-China rail opened to passengers in 2021. The route lasts about 10 hours and connects the southwest Chinese industrial hub of Kunming to Vientiane, the country’s capital.
A more initiative is live in Thailand, which aims to connect the Laos-China Railway with Bangkok. The Thai government anticipates the series to be functional by 2028 despite disruptions and rising development costs.
In response to that, strategies are being made to expand the range to north Malaysia, where it will run from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore before ending in Singapore.
China also backed Southeast Asia’s second high-speed road. The project in Indonesia, which provides a much quicker commute between Jakarta and Bandung , launched in 2023, and 2023.
Increased ease of travel abroad and the rising popularity of road travel, particularly among younger Foreign tourists, are among the highlights of high-speed road jobs. But, not all plans have been easy running.
The Thai government agreed to cover the full cost of US$ 5 billion for the first tower period, according to Reuters, and the task was met with some attention and criticism.