After more than a dozen years of construction, Vietnam's largest city has a rapid transit line. It just opened this week and has already drawn tens of thousands of passengers.
If you can make it to Ho Chi Minh City within the next three weeks or so, you can ride the metro for free. It is about 12 miles long with 14 stations, including several underground.
The project was more than 17 years in the making since the government approved it. Sunday's opening day was six years behind schedule and the final cost of nearly $2 billion was more than twice the original estimate.
Japanese government loans paid for the bulk of the cost and Japanese companies did most of the work on Vietnam's latest mass transit operation.
The country's overall urban transportation is a tale of two cities. In the north, the first metro line in the capital of Hanoi opened in 2021. A second line began operations this fall and expansion has accelerated.
Construction for Hanoi's system involves a series of Chinese companies, while financing includes government loans, along with some other international development grants and loans. Hanoi's city government plans eight metro lines by 2030.
The city government in Ho Chi Minh City wants to build at least six more lines but officials say they need help with financing.
