NDO - The Hanoi government has decided to relocate the underground station that will serve the Hoan Kiem Lake area of the planned Nam Thang Long-Tran Hung Dao urban rail line to outside the protection area of the historical site.

In the original plan, the main body of the C9 station and one of its entrances sit entirely within the protection area of Hoan Kiem Lake and Ngoc Son as stated under the heritage law.

Therefore, the plan did not receive the consent of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism nor the National Assembly’s Culture and Education Committee.

Under an alternative plan, the station will be removed from the project for the moment and may be constructed at a later date, but this has been assessed to be incompatible with the capital city’s general plan and affect transport capacity.

In addition, the construction of the station after the line is put into service would be technically difficult while also causing cost overruns and raising safety concerns for passengers.

In the final plan approved by the Hanoi government, the design and location of the station will be modified to comply with the heritage law while still ensuring technical feasibility.

The C9 station will be 202 metres long, 15 metres wide, 31 metres deep and features two entrances/exits. It will be located 97 metres from the Pen Tower of Ngoc Son Temple.