HCMC's first metro line must complete in early Sept: Prime Minister

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has required the construction of Ho Chi Minh City’s first metro line to be finished by September 2 this year - the National Day and four months ahead of the schedule.

The PM took a test run on the metro route on Saturday afternoon to check over its operation. He asked all agencies and units involved in the construction to make more efforts toward the new completion timeline.

To date, more than 94.6% of work in the major project has been completed, according to the HCMC Urban Railway Management Board’s (MAUR) latest report.

The HCMC People’s Committee, in a recent decision prior to the PM’s new request, had set this year’s fourth quarter as completion timeline. Commercial operations would follow when all conditions allow, it had said.

The 19.7-kilometer metro line will run from Ben Thanh Hub in District 1 to Suoi Tien Depot in Thu Duc city on HCMC’s outskirts. The total investment is VND43,700 billion, equal to around $1.89 billion, sourced from Japanese official development assistance (ODA) and Vietnamese counterpart funds.

Work began on the metro line in 2008. The project has missed several deadlines.

The first metro line is designed to have three underground and 11 elevated stations. It will have 17 Japanese-made trains, able to carry 930 passengers each. The trains can travel up to 110 kilometers per hour above ground and 80 kph underground.