HCMC – Vietnam Railway (VNR) has proposed not applying service life regulations on locomotives and train cars.

According to statistics of VNR, the railway sector had had 258 locomotives, 980 train cars and 4,318 wagons by end-2022.

The service life of locomotives and train cars pursuant to Decree 65 of the Government ranges from 40 to 45 years.

Based on the above regulation, the number of locomotives out of service will increase in the coming years.

The preliminary estimate of the VNR showed that the replacement of diesel locomotives and train cars would need a minimum cost of VND8,000 billion.

Under its commitment made at the UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Vietnam will shift to using locomotives and train cars running on clean energy by 2050.

The replacement of diesel locomotives with electric ones is not practical now as Vietnam’s railway is using diesel technology with a track width of 1,000mm, which is not designed for trains using electric technology.

Also, Vietnam is yet to have standards, specifications and maintenance regulations for operating locomotives using clean energy.

Given the current situation, the Ministry of Transport is advised to propose the Government report to the National Assembly to remove the regulations on the service life of trains.