Construction of the HCM City’s Metro Line No 1 project in Văn Thánh Area in Bình Thạnh District.VNS File Photo

HCM CITY  The HCM City People’s Committee has instructed the Management Board of Urban Railway (MAUR) to send the changes to the first two metro lines’ cost estimates to the city's People’s Council for approval.

Line Nos 1 and 2 will go from Bến Thành Market in District 1 respectively to Suối Tiên Tourism Park in District 9 and the Tham Lương Bus Terminal in District 12.

Bùi Xuân Cường, head of MAUR, asked the council to approve the changes so that work could be sped up and the  Department of Planning and Investment to help the city's People’s Committee complete the procedures and to send them to the Ministries of Planning and Investment and Finance by August 9 for assessment.

He called on the council for assessment of technical design to assess the designs of Ba Son and HCM City Theatre stations, their electronic and mechanical works and the transformer station and buildings at the depot.

He asked the Department of Construction to advise the sub-project on building parks and creating greenery along the Hà Nội Highway and the line No 1.

For the Metro Line No 2 Project, the HCM City Department of Planning and Investment was asked to help the city to perform necessary procedures and to send to the Ministries of Planning and Investment and Finance for assessment by August 9.

The Committee will closely supervise the compensation for site clearance, to ensure the timely compensation and resettlement of the households affected by the project, so that the site could be handed over to the MAUR in June 2020.

The Committee will consider and ratify the proposed financial mechanism of the MAUR in the 2020-22 period with a vision to 2030.

Võ Văn Hoan, Deputy Chairman of HCM City People’s Committee, urged relevant agencies to complete all legal documents on the adjustment of investments for the two metro line projects to send them to relevant agencies, so that the documents can reach the HCM City People’s Council by 15 October 2019, before they are reported to the Government.

Works on site clearance compensation for households affected by the project must be completed by August 20, said Hoan.

Trần Lưu Quang, Deputy Secretary of the HCM City Party’s Committee, asked district authorities and relevant agencies to closely coordinate in works of the city’s first two metro line projects. — VNS