On August 7, Mr. Nguyen Ba Son, Deputy Head of Hanoi Urban Railway Management Board (MRB), said that up to now, the entire elevated section from Nhon station to Cau Giay station, 8.5km long, has completed construction, installation and trial operation.

"The acceptance work has been completed. However, we are still waiting for the official document on the commercial operation date from the Hanoi People's Committee," Mr. Son informed.

Sharing more, Mr. Vu Hong Truong, General Director of Hanoi Metro (the unit assigned to operate the Nhon - Hanoi Railway Station Metro line) said that up to this point, the unit has prepared all conditions to put into operation, serving the needs of the people in the best way.

“The information about putting the Nhon - Hanoi Railway Station elevated section into operation is the best news for the company's staff in 2024. All the experiences and lessons from the Cat Linh - Ha Dong line that has been in operation for nearly 3 years have been drawn from by us, in coordination with the investor and related units to best serve the operation of the line,” Mr. Truong informed.

Hanoi Metro approached the project very early. Mr. Truong said that in the final stage, the Corporation simultaneously implemented a series of tasks: Organizing the reception, training and recruiting personnel to operate according to the technology of the line, coordinating with the investor to conduct trial operations and review the maintenance, repair and operation processes of the line.

The Corporation also coordinates with investors and consultants to perform tasks serving the independent consultant's system safety assessment.

“We have developed an operational plan for the initial exploitation phase and the following phases… It can be said that, up to now, we have carried out all tasks on schedule, ensuring the best reception and operation,” said Mr. Truong.

Differences compared to Cat Linh - Ha Dong metro

Having nearly 3 years of experience operating the Cat Linh - Ha Dong metro line, Mr. Truong informed about some differences of the Nhon - Hanoi station metro line.

Firstly, both lines have 4 cars. The Cat Linh - Ha Dong Metro has a capacity of 960 passengers, including both seated and standing passengers (the seat ratio is 144/960, accounting for 15%). The Nhon - Hanoi Railway Station line has a capacity of 944 passengers, including both seated and standing passengers (the seat ratio is 94/944, accounting for 10%).

Second, compared to the Cat Linh - Ha Dong train, the Nhon - Hanoi railway station train has a higher speed.

"Because of the higher speed, when the train from Nhon to Hanoi station starts to move, it will be a bit jerky, but you will get used to it. The train meets European standards," said Mr. Truong.

During the operation process, at each stop, the train driver must get off and go out once (both to observe safety and to prevent falling asleep). The Nhon - Hanoi station metro train has an anti-falling button and a camera so the driver does not have to leave his position when the train arrives at the station.

“Regarding the automatic ticket collection system, the Cat Linh - Ha Dong line only has one side, but in the Nhon - Hanoi station metro, the ticket sales area is arranged on both sides. In particular, tickets on the Nhon - Hanoi station line have customer identification. This helps limit the situation of lending tickets to others. This is also the difference and advantage of this system,” said Mr. Truong.

The Cat Linh - Ha Dong route and the Nhon - Hanoi station route apply similar fare policies. A ticket to one station of the Cat Linh - Ha Dong route is 8,000 VND (lowest), and a ticket to the entire route is 15,000 VND. Similarly, the Nhon - Hanoi station route is the lowest at 8,000 VND (to one station) and a ticket to the entire route is 12,000 VND. A day ticket, for the Cat Linh - Ha Dong route is 30,000 VND, while for the Nhon - Hanoi station route it is 24,000 VND.

Monthly tickets for both routes are the same with the general price being 200,000 VND/month, for students it is 100,000 VND/month, and group tickets are discounted by 30% (to 140,000 VND/person/month). In addition, both routes are free for children under 6 years old, and people over 60 years old have a free bus pass," Mr. Truong informed.