Hanoi police have sent a proposal to the Transport Ministry requesting that it move the Hanoi Railway Station out of the city center to reduce congestion and accidents.
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The surprising proposal was submitted by Colonel Dao Thanh Hai, deputy head of Hanoi Police Department, who said that the move is necessary “because trains travelling inside the city cause congestion at crossings,” writes DTI News.
Not only were there were 388 railway accidents in 2014, resulting in 161 fatalities and 256 injuries, according to the Vietnam Railway Corporation (VRC), but in Hanoi, many tracks run through densely populated residential areas. This makes for some pretty spectacular photos but poses serious safety threats.
Daily life along Hanoi's train tracks. Photo via Ashit Desai.
As one can imagine, moving the city’s main railway station would be a herculean task, one that Tran Ngoc Thanh, the general director of VRC doesn’t seem particularly happy to entertain.
"If we relocate the station now, then we don't know how to connect all the railways for the next 10 years," he said.
Thanh added that the station is integral to the city’s urban planning since it is the starting point of five major rail lines and that it’s it would be “almost impossible” to remove the 400 rail crossing that dot the city.
The Hanoi Railway Station in the early 20th century.
The historic railway station, located on Le Duan Street in Hoan Kiem District, was originally built in 1902. Though its side wings remain, the central part of the structure was destroyed by an American bomb in December 1972.
[Photo via AlexKrengel]
