National Assembly deputies vote to approve pilot mechanisms and policies for the urban railway systems in Hà Nội and HCM City on Wednesday. — VNA/VNS Photo Doãn Tấn

HÀ NỘI — The National Assembly (NA) on Wednesday morning adopted a resolution on piloting specific mechanisms and policies for the development of urban railway networks in Hà Nội and HCM City as part of its ongoing ninth extraordinary session.

The document was approved with all 459 participating deputies voting in favour, accounting for 96.03 per cent of the total number of deputies.

The resolution, consisting of 11 articles, aims to mobilise all lawful resources, speed up the implementation progress, and effectively utilise land resources for their urban railway projects.

The document also aims to empower the two cities in implementing investments in these public transport infrastructure projects, and realise the related resolutions and conclusions of the Party Central Committee and the Politburo.

Six specific and special policy groups approved include capital mobilisation; investment implementation order and procedures; urban development under the Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) model; railway industry development, technology transfer and human resources training; construction materials and waste disposal policies; and regulations exclusive to HCM City.

Notably, among regulations specifically applicable to HCM City regarding the TOD model, the municipal People's Committee is allowed to collect and use some revenues to develop the urban railway system, public transport system, and technical infrastructure connecting to the public transport system.

The committee is allowed to borrow capital through the issuance of local government bonds, from domestic financial institutions, other domestic organisations and the Government's foreign loans and other legal forms of capital mobilisation with the total outstanding debt not exceeding 120 per cent of the city's budget revenue.

If the total outstanding debt exceeds 120 per cent, the NA shall consider and adjust the amount to suit the locality's needs.

Accordingly, based on the ability to balance and allocate the medium-term public investment plan, the annual central budget will provide targeted supplementary funding to the local budget, with a maximum of VNĐ215.350 trillion (US$8.3 billion) for Hà Nội and a maximum of VNĐ209.500 trillion ($8.2 billion) for HCM City during the medium-term public investment plan periods of 2026-30 and 2031-35. This serves as the basis for investment decision-making and project implementation.— VNA/VNS