The Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) Board of Directors has approved a USD293 million loan to support a USD1 billion metro rail project in Hanoi.

Metro rail projects are an effective way to deal with Hanoi\'s traffic jams

The new rail link will stretch from Hanoi’s main railway station in Hoan Kiem District to Nhon, in Tu Liem District, 12.5 km to the west.

The ADB-supported rail line is scheduled to be completed in 2015. Over 150,000 people a day are expected to use it initially, with the number rising to almost half a million a day by 2030.

The line, also funded by the Government of France and the European Investment Bank, is one of four priority metro lines planned for the capital’s metropolitan area. Hanoi’s Urban Transport Master Plan aims to get half the city using public transport by 2020.

ADB already approved a separate loan in support of a metro line in Ho Chi Minh City earlier this year, bringing ADB’s total support for urban metro rail development in Vietnam to USD833 million.

As Vietnam’s economy continues to grow, many of Hanoi’s residents are switching from motorbikes to cars. This trend, coupled with the fact that the capital’s population is expected to balloon from six to eight million people by 2025, threatens development and the environment.

“If Hanoi doesn’t develop quality, high-volume public transportation systems the city will slowly grind to a standstill over the next decade,” said Robert Valkovic, ADB’s Principal Transport Specialist for Southeast Asia, adding that “The metro is essential to Hanoi’s future."

Nine out of ten people in congested Hanoi use private vehicles as their primary means of transport, with the remainder relying primarily on buses.

ADB, based in Manila, is dedicated to reducing poverty in Asia and the Pacific through inclusive economic growth, environmentally sustainable growth, and regional integration. Established in 1966, it is owned by 67 members – 48 from the region. In 2010, it approved a total of USD13.8 billion in financing operations through loans, grants, guarantees, equity investments, and technical assistance projects. ADB also mobilised co-financing amounting to USD3.7 billion.