Ho Chi Minh City Management Authority for Urban Railways Sept 8 signed a cooperative agreement with a representative of the Spanish government to build the first phase of $1.85 billion metro route 5. The first phase of the route, which has a total capital of EUR700 million with EUR500 million funded by Spain, will link Can Giuoc station and Saigon bridge, the Voice of Vietnam Radio said. The Spanish government and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) are considering providing funds for the second phase of the metro project which will connect Bay Hien intersection and Can Giuoc coach station. Ho Chi Minh City expects to start building the route in April, 2011 and put it into operations in 2015, aiming to develop a public transport network and a modern metropolis. Under the transport development program by 2020 of the city approved by the prime minister, the metro route 5 is one of the seven projects that cost $6 billion and have a combined length of 107 kilometers. The southern metropolis needs $7.5 billion to develop six urban railway projects and five metro routes between now and 2020. Of the sum, $6.3 billion is expected to come from foreign loans. (VOV News Sept 9, Phap luat Tp HCM – HCM City Law Sept 9 p6)
