- On 8 January 2025, the British Embassy in Hanoi and the Hanoi Metropolitan Railway Management Board (Hanoi MRB) signed a GCIP MoU on transit-oriented development at a workshop organised by GCIP Vietnam.
- The workshop was attended by Iain Frew, British Ambassador to Vietnam, and Duong Duc Tuan, Vice Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee.
- The Chairman of Hanoi MRB expressed satisfaction with the workshop outcomes and has requested continued support from GCIP.
Vietnam’s remarkable economic growth and industrialisation in recent decades has seen its urban population nearly double since 1990. As urban transport infrastructure struggles to keep up with this population boom, and there is a clear need for transport solutions that are sustainable, resilient and accessible to all inhabitants of Vietnam’s urban areas. As part of the UK Government’s mission to help Vietnam improve its urban transport infrastructure, the Green Cities and Infrastructure Programme (GCIP) is working with the Vietnamese Government to implement transport-oriented development (TOD) in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam’s two biggest cities.
TOD aims to make land use and rail infrastructure work together more effectively to create socially inclusive, pedestrian-oriented communities. By bringing funds from land value increases into the public sector to support public transport interventions, TOD increases public transport ridership, improves accessibility, boosts economic growth and enhances urban liveability.
The GCIP Vietnam team took a major step forward in this mission on 8 January 2025, when it successfully hosted a TOD workshop in collaboration with the Hanoi Metropolitan Railway Management Board (Hanoi MRB) at the Meliá Hanoi Hotel. The event brought together over 170 participants, with 117 attending onsite and 56 joining online. Among the distinguished attendees were Iain Frew, the British Ambassador to Vietnam; Duong Duc Tuan, the Vice Chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee; and representatives from government departments, law firms, universities and real estate and transport companies.
The workshop explored and gathered feedback on the draft proposals guiding the implementation of the Hanoi Capital Law related to TOD in Hanoi. The drafting of these proposals – the first of their kind for Vietnam – has been a central focus of GCIP Vietnam for the past three months. The workshop also included presentations from Hanoi MRB and the GCIP Vietnam TOD team, with local experts presenting onsite and Crossrail International and Transport for London colleagues online. The presentations were followed by engaging discussions and active participation from the audience, reflecting the strong interest in TOD.
At the heart of the workshop was the signing of the GCIP memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the British Embassy in Hanoi and Hanoi MRB. This milestone was witnessed by representatives from the Hanoi People’s Committee, the British Consulate-General in Ho Chi Minh City and GCIP Vietnam.
The workshop was received positively by attendees, with the Hanoi MRB Chairman expressing satisfaction with the outcomes and requesting continued support from GCIP. The event also garnered significant media attention, with 15 Vietnamese news outlets covering the MoU signing and discussions.
The UK’s Green Cities and Infrastructure Programme is tackling climate change and extreme poverty by accelerating the delivery of sustainable green cities and climate-resilient infrastructure.
