Cat Linh - Ha Dong elevated train carries passengers for free in the first half month

The Ministry of Transport has just planned to put the Cat Linh - Ha Dong urban railway line (Metro No. 2A) into commercial operation from April 2019 after completing the trial operation.

Accordingly, to serve this plan, the Hanoi Department of Transport and the receiving and operating unit have just proposed a plan to adjust the routes of 34 bus routes to "attract" passengers for the metro and run trains for free for half a month.

Mr. Vu Hong Phuong - Deputy Director in charge of the Railway Project Management Board (Ministry of Transport) said that the project will put the trains into trial operation from September 20, 2018 to check and align the joints of the technical items of the entire project, and at the same time complete the installation of the remaining technical items.

Cat Linh - Ha Dong train will operateand free passenger transport for the first half month.

According to the plan, by March 2019, the project will meet all technical safety conditions to operate trains. However, to put the project into commercial operation and officially serve passengers, it is necessary to complete the procedures and documents for project acceptance. The Ministry of Transport will inspect and urge the general contractor to speed up the completion of the documents for acceptance. The general contractor also commits to make efforts to complete the documents in April 2019.

Mr. Vu Hong Truong - General Director of Hanoi Metro added that from March 1, all personnel in the training program at the project will be put into practical training to prepare for official operation. According to regulations, personnel in some departments, including railway drivers, must be tested and granted vehicle operating licenses.

According to Mr. Truong, after the project is handed over, the unit will conduct a trial operation with passengers. During the initial trial period, the operation may be free to attract passengers.

Previously, on February 15, Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyen Ngoc Dong said that the project currently has about 4% of the construction volume related to some rough items such as access roads, inside the waiting room... After the trial run is completed, the general contractor will make adjustments before being accepted, received and handed over to Hanoi City for management and commercial exploitation.

According to Deputy Minister Nguyen Ngoc Dong, the proposed fare for this railway route is about 10,000 VND/trip, with subsidies from the Hanoi budget. Currently, Hanoi is issuing a legal framework and moving towards building a public transport card that will be used for railways, buses, parking lots, etc.

The Cat Linh - Ha Dong railway line is 13 km long, including 12 elevated stations. The project is being implemented by a Chinese contractor. Initially, the project was expected to be implemented from November 2008 to November 2013, with a total investment of more than 552 million USD. However, due to slow progress, it was not until October 2011 that the project was officially implemented and the total investment capital was adjusted to more than 868 million USD (more than 18,000 billion VND).

The project was energized throughout the system at the end of July 2018. From September 20, 2018, the project tested the entire project (including the train and 11 related equipment) and put it into commercial operation after a 3-6 month trial run.