It took 17 times for Vietnam’s professional money to reach this point. The initiative, funded mainly by Chinese state funding, was first approved in 2007 and slated to cost only US$ 668 million.
When construction began in 2012, officials promised the series would be operational in five years.
But as difficulties mounted, vehicles and scooters multiplied in the area of 9 million people, making the district greatly congested, increasingly polluted and time-consuming to understand.
According to deputy president Bui Xuan Cuong, the rail “meets the growing travel requirements of people and contributes to reducing transportation congestion and economic waste.”
Cuong acknowledged that” many obstacles” had to be overcome by the authorities in order to move forward with the job.
“FRUSTRATING” DELAYS
According to state media reports, the metro was delayed because of” slower capital allocation, unexpected technical difficulties, staff problems and the COVID-19 pandemic”.
With only 14 place ceases, the route’s “impact may be limited in the little work,” warned Professor Vu Minh Hoang of Fulbright University Vietnam, who “has been frustrated by the difficulties and cost overruns.”
Nevertheless, it is still a “historic success for the city’s industrial advancement”, he added.
With instructions learnt,” the development of future lines may be extremely easier, faster, and more cost-efficient”, Hoang told AFP.