The MAUR said it is taking all required steps for the bidding process to complete this year.
As the land acquisition process is underway, Vice Secretary of the municipal Party Committee Tran Luu Quang has urged relevant agencies to pay more attention to the project and complete land clearance in June.
The line’s construction is expected to finish in 2025 so that the project can be put into use in 2026, two years later than the initial 2024 goal.
The city’s Ben Thanh – Tham Luong Metro Line will have 10 stations and span more than 11 kilometres through districts 1, 2, 3, 10, 12, Tan Binh and Tan Phu. Trains will travel underground for about 9.2 kilometres.
When completed, the metro line will connect the Thu Thiem new urban area with downtown HCMC and neighbourhoods in the city’s northwestern section.
It is designed to be capable of carrying up to 140,000 passengers per day after the first phase completes and 400,000 passengers per day in the second phase.
The project cost has nearly doubled since its start, from VND26 trillion (US$1.1 billion) to VND47.89 trillion ($2.05 billion).
HCMC authorities had previously announced they would speed up work on Metro Line No 1, connecting Ben Thanh in District 1 and Suoi Tien Theme Park in Thu Duc District so that it could be completed by the end of 2021.
