Therefore, the 781 meter stretch will be built after nearly five months of construction. About 40 engineers and workers are working 24/7 in the construction site to complete the remaining part of five meters two months before schedule.
According to plan, the 700m long tunnel boring machine (TBM) weighing 300 tons will be removed from the station at Saigon Opera House to Ba Son station to finish the work.
Afterwards, it will continue digging the second tunnel to the Opera House and the work is expected to complete by 2018. The two tunnels will provide one way rail tracks for trains to travel to and from the center of the city.
The Management Board of Urban Railway said that Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has signed a technical cooperation agreement to improve the ability of the project’s operation company and HCMC’s agencies in preparation for the operation of metro routes after being built.
Work started on Ben Thanh-Suoi Tien metro line with the total capital of US$2.49 billion ($47 trillion) in August, 2012.
The 19.7 kilometer route goes through Districts 1, 2, 9, Binh Thanh and Thu Duc in HCMC and Di An district in Binh Duong province. Of these, 2.6 kilometers are underground with three stations and over 17.1 kilometers above the ground with 11 stations.
The project is expected to complete at the end of 2020.
The tunnel boring machine (TBM) on the tunnel construction site of Ben Thanh-Suoi Tien metro line (Photo: SGGP)
