(Video: VNE)

Photo: VNE

The Cat Linh - Ha Dong metro line in Hanoi starts commercial operation, after 10 years of construction. Hundreds of people queue at the station, waiting to board the train, as reported by VNE.

Photo: VNE

Each passenger is given a train pass.

After being free for the first 15 days, it will cost VND8,000–15,000 ($0.35–0.66) for a ticket.

There will also be monthly tickets for VND100,000-200,000.

Photo: VNE

Passengers swipe their passes to enter the platform at Cat Linh Station.

Photo: VNE

The train cars are filled with passengers, with many having to stand. According to Vu Hong Truong, director of Hanoi Railway One Member Limited Company, the train carried about 400-500 passengers Saturday morning.

A train departs every 15 minutes, with the frequency to be adjusted after the first 15 days.

Photo: VNE

Tran Ngoc Quynh from Hoang Mai District goes to Cat Linh Station at 7 a.m. with his friend, saying he is "thrilled because I was waiting quite long to see the metro line enter operation."

Having used metro lines in Europe before, Quynh says the train in Hanoi runs smoothly, while stations, elevators, and platforms are all well-constructed and convenient.

Photo: VNE

The train passes Ring Road 3, at the Nguyen Trai - Nguyen Xien intersection.

A total of 52 bus routes run along the metro line, with 16 of them passing through Cat Linh Station. To help citizens have easier access to the metro line, Hanoi has added and adjusted many bus routes, and established many parking lots for personal vehicles at each station.

Photo: VNE

Staff remind people to maintain a safe social distance when entering and leaving trains.

High expectation for Vietnam's first metro line

For Nguyen The Thanh, 26, traffic jams have been the norm in Hanoi. Traveling 10 kilometers from his house in Ba Dinh District to Ha Dong District for work every day has long been one of his worst experiences.

When the Cat Linh-Ha Dong metro line started running Saturday morning, the IT engineer could not wait to go for a ride, hoping his daily commute would grow easier.

"When I saw the metro line under construction, I yearned for the day I could ride one of the trains and escape my daily traffic-jam torture. Now my dream has come true," he told VNE, before traveling to Cat Linh Station to try the country’s first metro.

Thanh is one of hundreds of excited residents waiting to board the train. They hoped the line would improve the image, as well as the transport conditions in a city plagued by traffic congestion during rush hour due to the large number of motorbikes and cars.

Hanoi's Deputy Chairman Duong Duc Tuan said the metro line would help increase the number of public transport users, and together with the nine other routes planned, form a key transport network to help reduce traffic congestion.

Among people waiting at Cat Linh Station early Saturday morning are many families, groups of elderly people and friends. Some people wore traditional ao dai for their first train experience.

"I used the metro when I was in the Soviet Union in the 1970s, so I’m thrilled to see Vietnamese now have a metro line of their own," said La Tan Thanh, a Dong Da District resident.

In the crowded waiting hall of Cat Linh Station, Nguyen Phuong Dung, who had brought her family along for the ride, said: "The metro line's contruction was started when I was in high school. Now I am married and have a daughter already."

Built by China Railway Sixth Group Co Ltd, the project took 10 years to complete with hurdles and conflicts delaying the work several times.

Next to Phuong, many young people took photos of the station and themselves on the platform filled with noise.

As the train stamped in, people grew more excited and tried to capture that moment with their cameras before getting into the cars, many elderly people struggling to manage the rush.

‘On par with other cities’

Many people, relieved that their wait for a modern metro line is over, are proud the new means of public transportation will help modernize their city.

"Hanoi is now on par with other modern cities in the world," said Hoang Minh Thuy, a university student riding one of the shiny new trains with her classmates.

Photo: VNE

Truong Vinh Tien, 66, resident of Dong Da District, said: "I only travel by bus, and now have another option, this is so convenient."

Inside shiny, air-conditioned carriages, hundreds of first-time passengers took photos of themselves and the city through the glass windows while wearing face masks.

"This is very modern, I feel like I am in Bangkok," Do Truong Tan, an engineer traveling with his family, noted.

Many people agreed the metro line is a symbol of the city's development.

"The train is very smooth and convenient for the disabled, the old and pregnant women... I am so proud," said Nguyen Thi My Hanh, 30, who used to work on the metro project.

The Cat Linh-Ha Dong metro line project in Hanoi was officially inaugurated and put into commercial operation on November 6 morning. The line, which runs from Cat Linh in Ba Dinh district to Ha Dong district, is the first urban railway put into operation in the country, according to VNA. Deputy Minister of Transport Nguyen Ngoc Dong and Hanoi's Vice Mayor Duong Duc Tuan sign a document to hand over the metrol line to Hanoi for commerical operation. Photo: VOV The quality assessment results of the metro line were approved by the State Council for Acceptance of Construction Projects on October 29. It was the final step for the project to begin commercial operation. With total investment of approximately US$886 million, funded by Chinese ODA, the elevated line is more than 13km long and has 12 stations and 13 trains. Each train, whose designed speed is 80 km per hour, has four carriages capable of carrying over 900 passengers. The municipal People’s Committee has announced the price of the tickets for the metro, with the lowest one being VND7,000 (US$0.31) for a trip and VND30,000 (US$1.33) for a day pass. A monthly pass for a passenger is priced at VND200,000 (US$8.83). The capital city is offering free travel for all passengers during the first 15 days after the line is put into operation. In the first week, the service will run from 5.30 a.m. to 8 p.m. every day with a train every 15 minutes. The frequency will be increased from the second week with a train leaving every 10 minutes. After six months, the service will be extended to 10.30 p.m., with a train every six minutes during rush hour.

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