Hanoi will need an additional VND1.9 trillion (US$80 million) and five more years to complete its second metro route, according to a new decision by the municipal People’s Council.

The Hanoi People’s Council on Monday approved the municipal People’s Committee’s proposal to adjust the city’s public investment plan during the 2021-25 period, a source close to Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper confirmed on Tuesday.

The proposal included the adjustments to the implementation of the Nhon-Hanoi Railway Station metro line.

According to the changes, the investment capital of the project increased by VND1.9 trillion ($80 million), from VND32.9 trillion ($1.39 billion) to VND34.8 trillion ($1.47 billion).

The full completion of the project was revised from 2022 to 2027.

"The increase of capital is to speed up the project implementation,” the source elaborated.

Local authorities are determined to put the elevated section of the metro line into operation in late 2022, but the underground section will need five more years to complete, the source added.

Following the approval by the Hanoi People’s Council, the adjustments to the project will be submitted to the prime minister later this month for the final approval.

There are several reasons for these adjustments, including difficulties in the site clearance process, lack of coordination between the developer and relevant departments and sectors, differences between international contract regulations and Vietnamese law, and impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the municipal People’s Committee explained in its proposal.

The additional cost will be funded by the state budget under the direction of the prime minister at the meeting on August 7, the administration added.

The Nhon-Hanoi Railway Station metro line, the second route after Cat Linh - Ha Dong in the capital city, is slated to run 12.5 kilometers from Nhon in Nam Tu Liem District to the Hanoi Railway Station in the downtown area.

It will include 8.5 kilometers on elevated tracks and four kilometers underground.

Initiated in 2009, the metro route is anticipated to help reduce 20,000 metric tons of vehicle exhaust in Hanoi each year.

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