New downtown road to HCMC's first metro line proposed for fire safety

In a document it sent to the city Department of Transport, it said the 150 m road should run parallel to the existing Alley 602 to the west of the Van Thanh elevated section in Binh Thanh District.

Once completed, it and Alley 603 will provide access to both sides of Van Thanh Station, enabling rescue in case of accidents.

The new road will also help reduce congestion around the station.

The management board has said the metro line will undergo evaluation before the start of its operation this year, which will involve meeting fire safety and firefighting requirements at stations.

Van Thanh station has only one access point through Alley 602, which is seven meters wide. The board said this could cause congestion once the metro starts operating, hindering fire trucks' access.

The Ben Thanh-Suoi Tien metro line, spanning around 20 km and costing over VND43.7 trillion ($1.77 billion), has three underground stations and 11 elevated stations.

Van Thanh is the first elevated station of the latter.

Some 98% of the line has been completed, and a trial commercial run is expected this July before it begins operations a month later.

 

 

New downtown road to HCMC's first metro line proposed for fire safety

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