The plan has been adjusted many times and is now in the phase of collecting ideas from the public, experts, ministries and agencies. This once again affirms the importance and historical significance of the capital planning.

Compared to the capital planning adjustment 10 years ago, Hanoi now has a total area of 3,300 sq.km, 3.6 times larger, and a double population, with 6.2 million people, making it one of the largest capital cities in the world.

However, strategic development plans and orientations are required to build Hanoi into a civilised and modern city that still preserves its thousand-year-old cultural values.

The Hanoi Capital Construction Master Plan for 2030 with a Vision to 2050 submitted to the municipal Party Committee recently is viewed as rather comprehensive.

Under the plan, Hanoi will have a population of around 9.1 million by 2030 and over 10 million by 2050. Its nucleus urban areas will accommodate 4-4.6 million people and the downtown core, including the Old Quarter, will have a maximum population of 800,000 citizens.

Five satellite urban areas, including Hoa Lac, Son Tay, Xuan Mai, Phu Xuyen-Phu Minh and Soc Son will have a population size of between 127,000 and 750,000 dwellers each.

The consulting unit PPJ, a consortium made up of the architectural firms Perkins Eastman of the US and Posco E&C and Jina from the Republic of Korea, has proposed setting up a green belt along the Day, Tich and Ca Lo Rivers. The belt will account for 68 percent of the city’s total natural area.

In the downtown core, the density of green trees and water surface is expected to increase to 7-15 sq.m per head in 2030 from the current figure of 1-2 sq.m.

In the long run, the land fund for the administrative urban area, including the National Administrative Centre, is planned to be placed at in the bottom of Ba Vi Mountain and adjoining the northern side of the Hoa Lac Urban Area.

A new traffic axis will be formed from the Hoang Quoc Viet-Pham Hung T-junction to the Ba Vi Mount, connecting the Thang Long and Xu Doai cultures. Along the axis, there will be cultural, historic and entertainment works, including systems of museums, exhibitions and art centres.

To accommodate the capital city’s trade activities and local travel demand by 2030, Hanoi will have eight more bridges and one tunnel across the Red River alongside building a new national railway and upgrading rail lines in the outskirts.

The Noi Bai International Airport, the largest in the northern region, will be expanded to raise its transport capacity to 20 million, 25 million and 50 million passengers in 2020, 2030 and 2050 respectively.

The Old Quarter will be restored so that it still maintains its historical values, existing scenes and a common living space.

The relics of ancient Thang Long, the Long Bien Bridge and a system of thousands of temples, pagodas, ancient villages and craft villages in the outlying districts of Son Tay, Quoc Oai and Dan Phuong will be restored and repaired.

According to the consulting unit, the total investment for the city’s infrastructure development is estimated at around 60 billion USD by 2030 and 89.9 billion USD by 2050, of which, 16.8 billion USD will be poured into traffic works.

The Hanoi Capital Construction Master Plan is expected to be submitted to the National Assembly for approval at a session in May this year. After getting the NA approval, the planning map will be displayed during the 1,000th anniversary of Thang Long-Hanoi in order to enable the people to see the face of the capital city in the next 40 years.

(VietnamPlus, 11/3/2010)