The directive comes from Resolution 09, which orders the city to make infrastructure its breakthrough priority and to finish a fully connected urban rail network by 2045.
The city now runs a single line, the 20-km Ben Thanh-Suoi Tien, which opened in late 2024.
Several of the lines meant to close that gap to 200 km are already under construction. They include the second line’s Ben Thanh-Tham Luong section, at more than 11 km, and its Ben Thanh-Thu Thiem section, a 6 km fully underground stretch that will tunnel beneath the Saigon River.
The largest is the 54 km Ben Thanh-Can Gio line, which broke ground in December 2025 and is being built and financed by VinSpeed, a unit of the conglomerate Vingroup. Designed for speeds up to 350 kph, it will connect the city center to the coastal Can Gio, site of a major Vingroup resort project, and is targeted for service in 2028.
An airport line is next in the queue. The nearly 48 km Thu Thiem-Long Thanh rail link is being pushed to break ground before July 2, the 50th anniversary of Saigon being renamed Ho Chi Minh City, and is designed to carry passengers from the center to the new Long Thanh International Airport, Vietnam’s flagship aviation project now nearing the opening of its first phase.
The city plans to start three more lines this year, including two connecting to the former Binh Duong Province which was merged into HCMC last year, and one connecting to Tan Son Nhat airport.
A Metro Line 1 train on the Ben Thanh-Suoi Tien route runs along Hanoi Highway, or Vo Nguyen Giap Street, in HCMC. Photo by Read/Quynh Tran |
The city’s construction department has put the cost of its priority lines, due before 2030, at roughly $17 billion, and is courting private investors to help fund them after Vingroup’s Can Gio deal showed domestic capital was willing to move fast.
The push is the centerpiece of a plan to cut chronic congestion and air pollution. Officials want the metro to handle 20-30% of all trips by 2030, rising to 35-50% by 2035 and 50-60% by 2045.
Beyond rail, the resolution directs Ho Chi Minh City to upgrade its transport and logistics backbone, tighten links between its seaports, airports, industrial parks and planned free trade zones, and build large-scale flood defenses against the tidal surges that regularly inundate low-lying districts.
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