As part of the capital’s 1,000^th anniversary celebrations (festivities to start in October 2010), IMV and its partner TRAMOC have fielded the idea of putting in a rail service link between Long Bien and Co Loa stations (in Dong Anh district, in the eastern part of Hanoi province territory). This is to be worked out in partnership with Vietnam Railway. The objective of the project is to facilitate access to a historic site in the capital (Co Loa citadel), which heretofore has not been given much attention by tourists. The availability of train transportation will enable tourists to go out and visit this outstanding heritage site. Île-de-France Region will also make funding available for renovation of the two access train stations.

The project has even more to it. Using the Hanoi 1,000^th anniversary celebrations and the proposal of a new tourist service as a lever, the idea is to have day trains shuttling between the capital and its outlying area. Dong Anh district is an area of high population density, with large numbers of commuters moving between this suburban sector and Hanoi city centre. These commuters travel by motorcycle, car and bus. The suggestion is to gradually introduce the train option to such people rather than using individual vehicles to go into Hanoi. Getting passengers to prefer rail travel to road travel would help decongest a number of major roads in the capital (such as Chuong Duong Bridge between Gia Lam and the historic section of the city). The project is therefore attempting to diversify the urban transport supply and highlight the relevance of an intercity rail network in Vietnam’s capital city.

Existing railway track and location of two cultural heritage places