HCMC – HCMC plans to start construction on a US$3.3-billion metro line linking the downtown area with the coastal area of Can Gio on December 19, in a bid to improve regional connectivity and support future urban expansion.
At a meeting between HCMC’s Railway Network Development Steering Committee and the Management Authority for Urban Railways of HCMC (MAUR), Secretary of the HCMC Party Committee Tran Luu Quang said the city would break ground on the Ben Thanh-Can Gio metro line on December 19, reported the Government news site.
The project has been proposed by VinSpeed High-Speed Rail Investment and Development JSC, a subsidiary of Vingroup. Its total investment is estimated at around VND85.65 trillion, nearly US$3.3 billion.
According to the environmental impact assessment report released for public consultation, the line will be nearly 53 kilometers long and run through eight communes and wards.
The line will start at the Ham Nghi-Le Loi intersection near Ben Thanh Market and end on a 39-hectare site adjacent to the Vinhomes Green Paradise Can Gio urban development project site.
VinSpeed aims to complete the feasibility study and land clearance in the fourth quarter of 2025, carry out construction and equipment installation through the third quarter of 2027, begin trial runs by late 2027 and launch commercial services in the third quarter of 2028.
At the meeting, HCMC Party Secretary Tran Luu Quang ordered relevant units to prioritize completion of its six metro lines and two national railway routes assigned by the central Government.
For three priority routes, namely Metro Line 2’s Ben Thanh-Tham Luong section, the Ben Thanh-Thu Thiem section and the Thu Thiem-Long Thanh line, he insisted they be operational before 2030, with a clear rollout timetable and clearly assigned responsibilities for each department and agency.
Tran Quang Lam, director of the city’s Department of Construction, said that under the master plan approved by the prime minister, HCMC will be the hub of seven national railway lines and 27 urban rail lines.
The city aims to complete about 232 kilometers of urban rail by 2030, with total investment estimated at US$19.67 billion. However, funding from the central Government and the HCMC budget will cover only about 66% of the required investment.
Therefore, HCMC needs to quickly draw up a plan to mobilize additional funding by leveraging land resources under the transit-oriented development (TOD) model and through various forms of public-private partnership.
