Construction site to be cleared in downtown HCMC as metro station nears completion

By Gia Minh March 12, 2021 | 01:00 am PT

Workers remove the construction site in front of the Opera House in HCMC's District 1, March 2021. Photo by the HCMC Management Authority for Urban Railways.

The underground metro station construction site in front of HCMC’s iconic Opera House is set to be cleared after seven years following completion of the work.

The 150-meter site on Le Loi Street in District 1 would be cleared by the end of April, the HCMC Management Authority for Urban Railways (MAUR) said on Thursday.

The station has been built for the metro line No.1 which runs 19.7 kilometers from Ben Thanh Market to Suoi Tien theme park in District 9.

Opera House is one of three underground stations out of a total of 14, some of which are also elevated.

It will have four floors and is almost complete.

Work on the much-delayed line, which began in 2012, is around 83 percent complete now.

The city had hoped it would begin commercial operation by the end of this year, but it was delayed yet again by the Covid-19 pandemic, and is now expected to start next year.

HCMC plans to build eight metro lines running a total of 220 km.