Passengers during a trial run on the HCMC’s Ben Thanh-Suoi Tien metro line. Photo by VnExpress/Quynh Tran
The HCMC Department of Transport has proposed new fares for the Ben Thanh – Suoi Tien metro of VND6,000-20,000 (US$0.24-0.8), with the minimum being only half the original fare.
It proposed VND6,000-19,000 for passengers using cashless payment methods and VND1,000 more for those paying in cash, it said in a document recently submitted to the city government for approval.
The lowest fare the department had proposed last year was VND12,000.
If the fares are approved, monthly passes will cost VND300,000, up from the previously proposed VND260,000, while tickets for unlimited trips will remain unchanged at VND40,000 per day and VND90,000 for three days.
The department suggested offering free travel on the metro and 17 bus routes connecting stations for the first 30 days to encourage people to use the new public transit. It will cost the city VND33 billion.
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A train of Ben Thanh-Suoi Tien metro line during a test run. Photo by VnExpress/Thanh Tung |
The Ben Thanh-Suoi Tien metro line, the city’s first, will run 19.7 km between District 1 and Thu Duc city’s Long Thanh depot through three underground and 11 elevated stations.
Work on it began in 2012 and experienced various delays, sending costs ballooning to over VND43.7 trillion.
It is in the trial phase until Nov. 17 and will begin commercial operation by the end of this year, and expects to carry around 40,000 passengers daily.
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