Good news for families who will be traveling between Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi in the future! I know most choose to fly, but this new 'bullet train' could be an exciting adventure.

Vietnam plans to build a US$33 billion high-speed railway system that would cut the 1,600-kilometer (1,000-mile) trip from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City by two-thirds, the government has announced.

The new bullet trains would travel at speeds of 300 to 350 kilometers per hour, reducing the current 32-hour train trip to roughly 10 hours, according to an announcement on the government Web site posted Tuesday.

The new 1,630-kilometer (1,010 mile) route would be 100 kilometers (62 miles) shorter than the existing line, built nearly 100 years ago by the former French colonial government.

The Japanese government will help raise funds for the project, Nguyen Ngoc Hung of the Vietnam Railways Corp. said Wednesday.

Vietnamese officials have been considering the railway plan since last year. This week, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung instructed railway officials to begin drawing up detailed plans, the Web site said.

Dung discussed the project with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during a recent trip to Tokyo, Hung said.

The railway is expected to be completed in seven years and would provide a much-needed upgrade to the link between the northern capital of Hanoi and the southern business hub of Ho Chi Minh City.

Vietnam plans to continue operating the old line as a link to various regional cities.

Vietnam is undertaking many projects to improve its transportation system so that it can keep up with the country's booming economy, one of the fastest-growing in Asia.

reported by The Associated Press February 7, 2007, 5:14AM EST

It's shocking and exciting at the same time to hear Viet Nam's economy be referred to as "booming". First becoming a World Trade Organization member, now plans for a new high speed railway....who knows what else is in store for this amazing country.





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