HCMC – The Cat Linh-Ha Dong urban railway project was handed over to the Hanoi City government and officially put into operation this morning, November 6, after 10 years of construction.
The long-stalled metro line will run from 5:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. everyday. There will be a train every 15 minutes in the first week and every 10 minutes from the second week.
Hanoi will offer free services for all passengers on the metro line during the first 15 days.
The tickets will later cost VND8,000 at the lowest, VND15,000 for a complete trip and VND30,000 for a day pass. There will also be monthly tickets for VND100,000-200,000.
After six months, the service may open until 10.30 p.m., and there will be a train every six minutes during the rush hour.
The Cat Linh-Ha Dong urban railway is 13 kilometers long, and has 12 stations and 13 trains. It starts at the Cat Linh Station in Ba Dinh District and ends at the Yen Nghia Station in Ha Dong District.
In the first stage, four to six trains will be used. Each train has four carriages and is capable of transporting 960 passengers at a time.
A complete trip on the 13-kilometer metro line will take 23 minutes after stopping at all 12 stations.
According to Vu Hong Truong, general director of the Hanoi Railway One Member Limited Company, there are 733 employees to operate the metro line.
The Cat Linh-Ha Dong urban railway project costs VND18 trillion (US$868 million), increasing 57% from the original estimate of VND8.77 trillion.
