Suối Tiên Station on HCM City’s Metro Line No. 1. Đồng Nai is seeking special mechanisms to extend the line from here toward the province’s administrative centre. — VNS Photo Bồ Xuân Hiệp

HCM CITY — The southern province of Đồng Nai has asked the central government for special policy exemptions to build a more than 60-km metro line linking HCM City, the provincial administrative centre, and Long Thành International Airport under a public-private partnership (PPP) model.

The request, sent by the chairman of Đồng Nai People’s Committee to the National Assembly’s Economic and Financial Committee and HCM City authorities, seeks to extend to Đồng Nai the special investment and planning mechanisms currently granted only to HCM City under Resolution 98.

The resolution allows HCM City to apply accelerated procedures for urban rail projects, including Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) land planning, expanded use of PPP investment, land-for-infrastructure swaps, and simplified administrative approvals.

A draft amendment to broaden the scope of these mechanisms was submitted to the NA on December 1.

Đồng Nai said similar authorities were needed to mobilise private capital, unlock land-value gains along the proposed route, and support urban and commercial development along the HCM City-Đồng Nai-Long Thành corridor.

The government has also directed both localities to jointly study a metro link connecting Tân Sơn Nhất and Long Thành airports.

The proposal would extend HCM City Metro Line No. 1, the city’s first metro route, currently nearing completion after delays caused by funding and administrative issues.

The line runs nearly 20 km from Bến Thành in downtown area to the Suối Tiên terminus in Thủ Đức, which was originally designed to serve as a regional transfer hub.

Under Đồng Nai’s plan, the line would be extended 63 km from Suối Tiến Station to the provincial administrative centre and Long Thành Airport, cutting travel time between the two airports to around 40 minutes, with only two intermediate stops: Thủ Đức Station and Đồng Nai Administrative Centre.

A private consortium has already expressed interest in participating, and the Party Committees of both HCM City and Đồng Nai have agreed that Đồng Nai would act as project investor.

Metro Line No. 1 is also slated for a northern extension into Bình Dương Province, with investment estimated at more than VNĐ51.7 trillion ($2 billion).

The proposed inter-provincial corridor is part of a wider southern rail development strategy approved in 2021, which envisions eight urban and regional lines linking HCM City with Đồng Nai, Bình Dương, Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu, Tây Ninh, Cần Thơ, Nha Trang, and major logistics hubs, including Hiệp Phước Port.

The Đồng Nai proposal is now under review by the National Assembly’s specialised committees and HCM City authorities. — VNS