The Da Lat Monorail is a proposed urban rail transit system in the city of Da Lat in the Central Highlands region of Vietnam.
The monorail plan was announced in 2011 and approved by the local government in 2013. At that point, they were hoping for it to be completed by 2020.
The proposal includes six monorail routes with a combined length of 89 kilometres. The monorail will have six-carriage trains, running at speeds of 30-40km per hour.
The network will connect the city centre to major tourist sites, as well as the Da Lat railway station and Lien Khuong Airport.
In addition to the monorail, the government announced plans for three interprovincial railways with a total length of 482km (they will be featured in another article). The cost of the monorail and railways were reported at a combined cost of over VND62 trillion (US$3 billion) in 2011. A separate monorail cost was not reported.
Routes And Map Of Proposed Stations
There is no map showing what the routes would look like. Previous announcements mention destinations and lines with estimated lengths.
Suoi Vang – 18.5 km (also reported at 8 km)
Lang Bian Mountain – 8.55 km
Tinh Yeu Valley (Love Valley)- 6.9 km
Tuyen Lam Lake – 11.7 km (also reported at 15 km)
Tung Lam Crossing – 11 km
Lien Khuong Airport – 28.2 km
Another report mentions a line from Dalat to the Valley of Love and Langbiang Urban Area (7km).
Central Highland Biological Institute and Da Lat Railway Station (for the Da Lat–Thap Cham railway) are also included as destinations.
[Map of Da Lat Monorail destinations.]
Da Lat Monorail Notes
I was going to make a basic route map to show what the monorail system might look like, but after plotting the destinations on the Google Map I can’t see how they would make 6 lines. Da Lat has a population of just over 230,000 people, so a 6-line monorail seems overly ambitious. I wonder if this was meant to mean 6 railways in total (the 3 inter-provincial railways plus 3 monorail lines). 6 monorail lines have been reported on official government websites, so that is what is known so far.
Da Lat is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Vietnam, and every year the traffic during major holidays is getting worse. The 2021 Reunification Day holiday saw cars stuck in traffic for 17 hours.
Even in non-holiday periods, the traffic in Da Lat is getting worse. In 2021 it was announced that Da Lat was to get its first traffic light.
Another problem of planning is the hilly terrain and narrow streets of Da Lat. A monorail using one track with passing loops might be the only way to fit an urban railway in Da Lat, and even then it will be a challenge.
Read more about future Da Lat developments.
News Archive
2020
Development master plan – [05/04/20]
Master plan published by the Lam Dong provincial government includes a tourist monorail.
“III. Production and Business Projects Calling For Investment
15. Tourist monorail in Da Lat city”.
2013
Six more railway routes planned for Central Highland tourism hub – [07/09/13]
“Local authorities in the Central Highland city of Da Lat approved a plan to build six new railway routes from city centre to several tourism sites by 2020, according to Truong Huu Hiep, director of the Lam Dong provincial Transport Department.
The project will involve installing a mono-railway, which will carry six-carriage trains to run at speeds of 30-40km per hour.”
Dalat to get new tourist railways – [10/07/13]
“…authorities in Dalat have approved the creation of six new railway lines, expanding from city centre to several popular local tourism sites, including Lang Bian Mountain, Tuyen Lam Lake, Love Valley and the Central Highland Biological Institute.
There will also be a connection to Lien Khuong Airport – the largest airport in the Central Highlands. A series of six-carriage electric trains will operate on the new tracks. The project is expected to be completed by 2020.”
2011
Lam Dong plans railway project – [29/10/11]
“An important part of Lam Dong’s railway development plan is a new urban railway network within Da Lat that will serve tourism activities.
Six monorail lines running from Da Lat’s centre to tourism destinations such as Suoi Vang, Langbian, Tinh Yeu valley, Tuyen Lam Lake and Lien Khuong Airport, will be built. The length of each section will be 18.5 km, 8.55 km, 6.9 km, 11.7 km and 28.2 km, respectively.”
Dalat to have six elevated railway routes – [13/09/11]
“The train route to Suoi Vang will be 8 kilometres long, while the train routes to Langbiang and Dalat-Tuyen Lam Lake will be 8 kilometres and 15 kilometres long, respectively.
A route from Dalat to the Valley of Love and Langbiang Urban Area will sprawl nearly 7 kilometres and another route to Tung Lam Crossing will be 11 kilometres in length. The last route to Lien Khuong Airport will be 28 kilometres long.”
Lam Dong plans three railways, six monorails – [10/09/11]
“The province also plans to build six monorail routes with a combined length of 89 kilometers. The monorail will run from the Dalat Station to several popular tourist sites and the Lien Khuong Airport.
The railway and monorail projects are estimated to cost over VND62 trillion (US$3 billion) in total and to be finished by 2030.”
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