Vietnam to build first underground railways
HANOI - Vietnam will start construction of its first underground railway routes in Ho Chi Minh City in mid-2004, at total investment of
795 million US dollars.
The government is expected to approve the project's feasibility study done by Germany's Siemens Group early next month, the local
newspaper Investment reported on Monday. According to the study, the first metro route will run from the city's Ben Thanh Market to
Tan Binh District, and the second from the market to the Mien Tay Bus Station, with a combined length of 21 kilometers.
The two routes are scheduled to become operational in 2010, serving some 50 million passengers in the first year and 70 million to
100 million passengers annually in the following period.The project is expected to start making profits in 2014. Vietnam is now
calling for investment for the project, besidesloans from Japan and Germany. The country's reciprocal capital will account for only 30
percent of the total funding.
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam's biggest commercial hub, has a population of 7 million and the gross domestic product per capita of
1,500 dollars.
Xinhuanet - October 13, 2003
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