The train cars arrived in Hai Phong after being shipped from France.

VnExpress reports that Sunday morning, a ship carrying a train for the Nhon-Hanoi metro line docked at the Nam Hai Dinh Vu Port to deliver a shiny new metro train. It took several hours to unload the four carriages, while workers are in the process of transferring them to Hanoi from Hai Phong.

Once the equipment arrives in the capital, the train will be displayed for the public at S1 station on Road 32. Afterwards, testing on the line will begin, while nine further trains are currently being built in France and will be shipped to Vietnam next year. 

Each tube vessel will be able to carry about 1,000 people, and their color scheme resembles a dragonfruit, while the exterior is adorned with the outline of a pavilion at the Temple of Literature. An official from the Hanoi Metropolitan Railway Management Board told the news source that the design took years to finalize and is meant to be distinctly Vietnamese.

"In Europe, many do not know Ha Long Bay, but they do know the dragonfruit," the official said. "When people saw the design, some said they guessed that this train was made for Vietnam." 

The metro line in question will cover 12.5 kilometers from Nhon in Nam Tu Liem District to the Hanoi Railway Station. Four kilometers of the line will be underground, while the rest will be above ground. The latter section is slated to begin commercial operations next year. 

The capital's first metro line, the Cat Linh-Ha Dong route, still has no expected opening date.

[Photo via Hanoi Metro Railway's Facebook page]