Urban railway route No.5 connecting Hà Nộ's Văn Cao Street to Hoà Lạc outskirt commune. Photo kintedothi.vn

HÀ NỘI — Hà Nội’s long-awaited urban railway line No 5 has officially been greenlit, bringing a VNĐ65.4 trillion (US$2.46 billion) mega project one step closer to reshaping how the capital moves.

The ambitious route, approved on September 4 by Vice Chairman of Hà Nội People’s Committee Dương Đức Tuấn under Decision No. 4602/QD-UBND, will link the bustling inner-city Văn Cao–Hoàng Hoa Thám intersection with Thạch Bình station in the outer Hoà Lạc commune. Spanning nearly 40km and cutting through both densely populated wards and suburban areas, the line is expected to play a crucial role in the city’s growing transport network.

The approved plan outlines a mixed alignment with 6.5km underground, 2km elevated and nearly 30km at ground level. The design follows the international standard 1,435mm double-track format, with a total of 20 stations — six underground, three elevated and 11 at-grade — primarily dotted along the Thăng Long Avenue and Hoà Lạc–Hoà Bình Highway corridors.

Strategically, line No 5 will connect directly with several other major lines including urban railway routes 2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8 and monorail M2, positioning it as a central spine in Hà Nội’s future metro system. According to city planners, this interconnected approach is essential for tackling the capital’s worsening congestion and accommodating its rapidly growing population.

The Hà Nội Planning and Construction Institute, with technical review by the Hà Nội Planning and Architect Institute, developed the detailed layout at a 1:500 scale. The alignment will cut across several urban wards including Tây Hồ, Ngọc Hà, Giảng Võ and Láng, as well as suburban communes such as Sơn Đồng, An Khánh and Yên Xuân.

In addition to the main line, two branch lines — measuring 4.8km in total — will connect the system to depot sites in Sơn Đồng and Hoà Lạc communes. The larger of the two depots spans 32 hectares in Sơn Đồng and is shared with line 8, while the Hoà Lạc depot covers 10.4 hectares and sits within a designated residential area.

The Hà Nội Metropolitan Railway Management Board has been tasked with announcing the detailed plan and setting boundary markers. Local ward and commune authorities are now responsible for managing the marked boundaries and land designated for railway construction.

The construction of line No.5 is scheduled to start in December this year.

If completed on schedule, line No 5 could become a defining element of Hà Nội’s urban future, laying the groundwork for a modern, integrated public transport system that extends well beyond the city centre. VNS