Appearance of metro line 1 after more than 10 years of waiting by Ho Chi Minh City residents

(Dan Tri) - After more than 10 years of waiting, metro line 1 (Ben Thanh - Suoi Tien) has gradually reached the finish line, bringing a completely new look to traffic and urban areas of Ho Chi Minh City.

After more than 10 years of construction, metro line No. 1 (Ben Thanh - Suoi Tien) is gradually reaching the finish line. It has taken shape and is gradually becoming a new symbol in the hearts of Ho Chi Minh City residents after many years of waiting. Metro line No. 1 is 19.7km long, including 2.6km underground and 17.1km above ground. The total investment after adjustment is 43,700 billion VND. The project has a route through District 1, Binh Thanh, Thu Duc City (Ho Chi Minh City) and Di An (Binh Duong).

The entire project has 17 trains with 51 carriages imported from Japan. The trains are brought to Long Binh depot (Thu Duc City), which is the place for maintenance and technical operation of the entire metro line No. 1.

Previously, on October 8, 2020, the first metro train No. 1 arrived at Saigon port (District 4, Ho Chi Minh City) after many days of transportation from Japan to Vietnam by sea.

The total length of metro line No. 1 is 19.7km, running from Long Binh depot (Thu Duc city) to the center of Ho Chi Minh City with many winding sections above, parallel to Hanoi Highway.

After more than a decade of waiting, Metro Line 1 is about to reach its finish line. The image of the high-speed train running on a test track on a winding track has made Ho Chi Minh City residents very excited. "I and everyone else are looking forward to Metro Line 1 being completed and put into operation soon. A modern and smart city like Ho Chi Minh City really needs many metro lines to create a breakthrough, helping people travel more conveniently," said Mr. Ton Van Nha (Thu Duc City).

On August 29, 2023, metro line No. 1 conducted its first test run on the entire route, starting from Ben Thanh station (District 1) to Suoi Tien station (Thu Duc city) and vice versa (with a route of nearly 40km).

The elevated railway section passes through Cat Lai intersection (Thu Duc City), one of the largest intersections in Ho Chi Minh City. After the completion of metro line 1, the appearance of Ho Chi Minh City has also changed a lot.

The entire metro line No. 1 is also equipped with 9 modern pedestrian bridges, helping passengers access the elevated stations conveniently and safely.

Metro Line 1 (Ben Thanh - Suoi Tien) is now more than 98% complete. The entire line has 11 elevated stations including: Van Thanh, Tan Cang, Thao Dien, An Phu, Rach Chiec, Phuoc Long, Binh Thai, Thu Duc, High-tech Park, Suoi Tien, New Eastern Bus Station and 3 underground stations: Ba Son, City Theater and Ben Thanh.

At the end of the elevated section is the Ba Son area, the metro train will gradually go underground to enter the city center, through 3 underground stations: Ba Son, City Theater and Ben Thanh.

Currently, the underground structure is 100% complete, the architecture of Ba Son station, City Theater station, and Ben Thanh central station are also approaching the "finish line".

The end point of metro line 1 is Ben Thanh central underground station. This is the most modern station with a uniquely designed architecture, located next to Ben Thanh market.

Ben Thanh Station is designed with a giant skylight, an architectural highlight with symbolic meaning for Ben Thanh Station in particular and metro line 1 (Ben Thanh - Suoi Tien) in general. The skylight is shaped like a lotus, 6m high, 21.6m in diameter. Its main function is to create a highlight, provide light and create an open space. This architectural block also promises to be an interesting entertainment and check-in spot for people and tourists when coming to Ho Chi Minh City in the near future.

Ben Thanh underground station has basically completed the interior design, air conditioning, ticket checking system, waiting for the time to hand over to the operating unit.

Meanwhile, the City Theater underground station was also completed on a large scale, consisting of 4 floors, including 3 floors for passenger service and one technical floor.

In particular, among the 11 elevated stations of Metro Line 1, Tan Cang Station (Binh Thanh District, Ho Chi Minh City) is the largest station, with 4 train lanes and is the connection point of Metro Line 1 and Metro Line 5 (to be built in the future). Tan Cang Station is designed with a roof system with an area of ​​6,200m2 made of plastic-coated fiberglass membrane, originating from Japan. This is the station with the largest roof in Vietnam at the present time.

Metro Line No. 1 Ben Thanh - Suoi Tien cannot be put into commercial operation in July after 3 requests for extension of completion time. From now until the end of September (quarter III) of this year, metro line No. 1 (Ben Thanh - Suoi Tien) needs to complete the unfinished tasks of the project and stop at the trial operation step. It is expected that in the fourth quarter, metro line No. 1 will be put into commercial operation of the entire line. Thus, this is the 4th time this project has been delayed in its operational milestone. The detailed plan is stated in the latest dispatch of the Ho Chi Minh City Urban Railway Management Board sent to the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, to propose removing difficulties of metro line No. 1 project. The reason why this project cannot be put into operation in July this year as scheduled is that the safety review and assessment of the construction system has not been completed; fire prevention and fighting has not been accepted; The training of key train drivers, operators, managers, and maintenance personnel has not been completed... The State Inspection Council has not yet accepted the remaining items.

Hai Long - Nam Anh

Dantri.com.vn

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/xa-hoi/dien-mao-tuyen-metro-so-1-sau-hon-10-nam-cho-doi-cua-nguoi-dan-tphcm-20240430003552750.htm