The railway system in Vietnam is owned and operated by the state-owned Vietnam Railways (). The principal route, the single track North-South Railway running between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, accounts for of the network's total length of . The national railway network uses mainly metre gauge, although there are several standard gauge and mixed gauge lines in the north of the country.
The first railways in Vietnam were established in the 1880s, with construction beginning in 1888; these included a tram running between the ports of Saigon and Cholon, and a regional rail line connecting Saigon with Mỹ Tho. Railway construction flourished soon afterwards, during the administration of Paul Doumer as Governor-General of French Indochina from 1897 to 1902. It was during this time that construction of the Yunnan–Vietnam and North–South railways began. Construction of the north–south line took over thirty years, finally ending in 1936, during which time other branch lines were also completed. Beginning in World War II, the entire rail network became a target of bombing attacks by a number of groups, including both North Vietnamese and South Vietnamese troops during the Vietnam War. Although the main lines—particularly the North–South line—were quickly restored and returned to service once conflict ended, many branch lines were abandoned and dismantled at their expense, their infrastructure used to replace damaged sections of the main lines, or sold as scrap.
With increased economic growth brought on by the Doi Moi reforms of the late 1980s, the railway system has entered a renewed phase of development. A number of major projects supported by official development assistance have been proposed or are currently underway, including a series of projects to improve bridge and railway safety on the North-South Railway line, connections to Cambodia and Laos, and the restoration of a number of defunct lines, including the Đà Lạt–Tháp Chàm railway first established in the 1930s. A high-speed rail link between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City has also been proposed, which would reduce journey length from 30 hours to around 6 hours. Laos has held a ceremony but construction remains stalled (2019) on a rail line to Lao Bao from Savannakhet, across from the Thai rail head to Bangkok. Two project for high-speed railway include the North-South Railway Express and the Ho Chi Minh City–Cần Thơ express railway.
Usage
Rail transport remains relatively underused as a mode of transport in Vietnam. While road transport dominates the transport sector by far—accounting for 65% of freight moved as of 2006—rail transport accounted for only 4% of freight transportation in 2008, and 5% of passenger transportation, leading it to be considered the "least relevant" of all modes of transport in the European Union's 2010 Green Book on Vietnam. According to reports by the Asian Development Bank, however, the role of rail transport is growing, carving out a significant role for itself in long-distance bulk cargo transport.
The following table gives an overview of rail transport volume and traffic over the period from 1998 to 2011:
History
Colonial beginnings
Rail transport was introduced to Vietnam in the 1880s, supported by the French administration of Indochina. The earliest rail project to be completed was the Saigon–Cholon tramway, established in 1881 in what was then Cochinchina, operated by the Cochinchina Steam Tramway Company (SGTVC). After a month of operation, the Lieutenant Governor of Cochinchina noted that ridership had already reached two thousand passengers. Construction of the first regional rail project, linking Saigon and Mỹ Tho, began in the same year, to be completed soon afterwards in 1885. The Saigon–Mỹ Tho line reduced travel time between the two cities from 12 hours to only 3 hours, and established a connection between Saigon and the shipping lanes of the Mekong Delta. The first railway in Tonkin, a gauge line connecting Lạng Sơn to Phu Lang Thuong (now known as Bắc Giang), was established in 1895.