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Ho Chi Minh City designs $250mn metro route leading to major airport

TUOI TRE NEWS
UPDATED : 11/14/2016 15:01 GMT + 7


A project on constructing a multimillion-dollar metro route leading to Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City is expected to be submitted to the prime minister for approval in two years.

According to the city’s Management Authority for Urban Railways, the metro route connecting Hoang Van Thu Park in Tan Binh District to the international airport has been planned.

The journey will be two kilometers long, with two underground stops being placed at the park and at the international terminal of the airdrome.
The second stop will also be connected with the domestic terminal via a tunnel for pedestrians.

Consultants of the project from South Korea have finished their report on the construction, which will be sent to the prime minister in the first quarter of 2017.

A detailed plan will be submitted in 2018 to seek approval for the project, whose investment is estimated at US$250 million, of which $224 million in loans will be provided by the South Korean government while the rest will be funded by the national budget.

The construction is anticipated to begin in the first quarter of 2019 and be completed in 2024.

The metro route is meant to provide tourists and local citizens with a convenient form of transport to the major airport, contributing to the city’s economic growth.

It will be linked metro line No.1, from Ben Thanh Terminal in District 1 to Suoi Tien Terminal in District 9.

The metro line, breaking ground in August 2012, is projected to cost $2.49 billion and designed to be 19.7 km long, running from District 1 through Binh Thanh District, District 2, District 9 and Thu Duc District before reaching Di An Town in neighboring Binh Duong Province.