Many foreign guests have misunderstood that the first metro line in Ho Chi Minh City has been put into operation seeing the city install signs showing the way to some metro stations.

Although the metro line has been neither completed nor put into service, the metro line operator has planted metro station signs, including those in District 1.

Nhat Nguyen, a reader of Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper, suggested that the city should cover the signage and reveal it only when the metro line is already in service to avoid misunderstanding.

He mentioned seeing a foreign family searching for a metro station, thinking the metro line was operational.

After wandering around the signage and getting explanations from some locals, the tourists, unable to find the station, eventually left disappointed.

Nhat Nguyen also suggested adding station names and distances to the signage to help tourists find metro stations more easily.

He noted that in other cities worldwide, maps are often placed outside metro stations to show routes to tourist attractions, shopping centers, or entertainment venues.

This approach helps attract more passengers to use metro services.

Metro service providers in Singapore, Sydney, and Bangkok also allow passengers to use credit cards to make payments, in addition to metro tickets, Nhat Nguyen informed.

The Ho Chi Minh City Management Authority for Urban Railways clarified that the metro station signs were installed to prepare for the launch of the city's first metro line.

Metro line No. 1, the first of its kind among the eight planned metro line projects in Ho Chi Minh City, is estimated to cost VND43.7 trillion (US$1.8 billion).

It runs 19.7 kilometers from Ben Thanh Market in District 1 to Suoi Tien Theme Park in Thu Duc City, including 2.6 kilometers of underground railways and 17.1 kilometers of elevated railways.

The route features three subterranean stations and 11 stations above ground.

The project has 17 Japanese-manufactured trains measuring 61.5 meters long and capable of carrying 930 passengers.

The entire metro line is expected to be completed by the end of this year, according to a decision issued by the municipal administration on September 24.

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