Saigon station

This article is about the station of North–South railway used to be named as Hòa Hưng. For the station of HCMC Metro, see Hòa Hưng station.

Saigon station (previously Hòa Hưng station) is a railway station in District 3, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The station is a major hub in the national railway network. Located about 1 km from the city center, Saigon railway station is the final station on the North–South railway, and the southernmost point of the Vietnamese railways.^{[1][circular reference]} The name of the station has remained the same despite the name of the city of Saigon being changed after the Vietnam War to Ho Chi Minh City (to honor the revolutionary leader who had declared independence back in 1945).

Saigon station Ga Sài Gòn
General information
Other names	Hòa Hưng station (Pre-1983)
Location	1 Nguyen Thong Street, Ward 9 District 3, Ho Chi Minh City Vietnam
Operated by	Vietnam Railways
Line(s)	North-South Railway
Platforms	3
Tracks	6
Connections	Taxis, buses, L2 L8 L9 Hòa Hưng station (only Line 2 is under construction, the others are proposed)
Construction
Structure type	Ground
Parking	Yes
Bicycle facilities	Yes
History
Opened	1885 (1885)
Services
Preceding station Vietnam Railways Following station Gò Vấp towards Hanoi North–South Terminus
Location

History

The colonial railway head office which is located in front of the former Saigon Station, now is the Vietnam Railways main booking office of HCMC.

The first Saigon station, which opened in 1885 as part of the Saigon–Mỹ Tho Railway, was located near the Quách Thị Trang Square in District 1. In 1904, Hanoi-Nha Trang Railway was opened but the first Saigon station was too small, so the colonial authorities decided to move the station. The second Saigon station was located at the southwest of the Bến Thành Market and constructed in 1915, now is the September 23 Park with Lê Lai Street and Phạm Ngũ Lão Street run along. The third and current Saigon station was opened in 1983 at Hòa Hưng, District 3.^[2]

Every year, one or two months before Tết, thousands of people queue all day at the station to buy tickets home, because it is the main booking office of Vietnam Railways. Though electronic booking machines have been adopted, the queues continue, due to the monopoly of the railway.

The head office is in 136 Hàm Nghi Boulevard, Ben Thanh Ward, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City.

Binh Trieu station

Due to the requirements of urban planning, the city government is considering the relocation of the station to the city outskirts at Binh Trieu (Binh Trieu Railway Station).^[3][4]