VnExpress reports that the municipal transport department recently reported on the progress of Saigon's first two metro lines.
The Ben Thanh-Suoi Tien Line, which is 68% complete, had been scheduled for completion in late 2020, but that has now been pushed back to the fourth quarter of 2021 at the earliest. Work on the line began in 2012.
The news source shares that this delay, the latest in many, is due to the fact that the Ministry of Construction hasn't commented on adjustments to the line's design, while the local Department of Planning and Investment hasn't finished funding appraisal paperwork.
Meanwhile, the Ben Thanh-Tham Luong line is now scheduled to open in 2026, a two-year delay from its 2024 goal. The project has seen its cost nearly double, from VND26 trillion (US$1.1 billion) to VND48 trillion (US$2.1 billion), and this funding has not been approved.
Construction on the line was supposed to start in 2014 and be completed last year, yet only an operating center has been built.
It seems traveling by metro will remain a figment of Saigoneers' imagination for the foreseeable future.
Related Articles:
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- How Will Saigon Metro Line 1 Connect With Existing Bus, Water Transport Networks?
- Saigon Metro Project Will Halt If Unpaid Bills Are Not Settled, Japanese Ambassador Warns
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