Construction of HCM City's second metro line is expected to start in mid-2013 and be finished by 2017.

The project, worth 1.37 billion USD, fell a year behind its original schedule, which planned to begin operating of the system in 2016.

Provincial People's Committee deputy chairman Nguyen Huu Tin urged for quicker land clearance in areas needed for the metro line to help speed-up the process.

"The land clearance and paying compensation must be finished by June next year for the construction to begin," Tin emphasised.

The 11.3-kilometre line will link Ben Thanh (District 1) and Tham Luong (District 12) and will pass through District 1, 3, 10, 12 and the Tan Binh and Tan Phu areas.

The system was designed with 11 stations, 10 of which will be underground, with a single elevated terminal in Tan Binh District.

With the train speeds reaching 80 kilometres per hour, the metro will allow journeys of only 18 – 20 minutes from one end to the other.

Work on the first metro line which spans 20-kilometres connecting Ben Thanh and Suoi Tien, began in early 2008 and is expected to be operational by 2017, according to the Urban Railway's Management Authority.
The city plans to build a total of six metro routes to create a safe and convenient urban transport system for the city's economic development./.