Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung on September 25 ordered the start of construction of a light metro line linking Nhon in Hanoi’s Tu liem suburban district and the Hanoi railway station in the inner district of Hoan Kiem.

Addressing the ground-breaking ceremony, PM Dung pointed to the project’s importance for the capital city’s construction and development, saying that it aims to raise capacity of public means of transport, meeting travelling demand and easing traffic congestions in the inner city.

He urged the municipal authorities to join hands with relevant agencies to accelerate other public transport projects.

The pilot light metro route or line No.3 is 12.5km long, including 4km underground. The project has a total capital of about 1 billion USD and will be carried out with consultancy services from France ’s Systra.

There will be 12 stations along the line which is designed for a maximum speed of 80 km per hour and capable of serving over 900 passengers at the same time. It will take passengers about 20 minutes to travel the whole length of the line.

The project is expected to be put into operational by late 2015./.