The 13-km route, Hanoi’s first metro project, has started a 20-day trial run from Monday. It links Yen Nghia area in Ha Dong District with Cat Linh area in Dong Da District.
It is easy to see Hanoi from the train.
Hanoi buildings seen from the train
An old apartment block in Thai Ha-Thai Thinh area
It takes the train around two minutes to go to a station
Royal City urban area
The project was kicked off in October 2011 and was initially slated for completion in 2013. However, due to the pace of construction, the route’s investment capital has ballooned to more than VND18 trillion (USD783 million) from VND8.7 trillion (USD381 million), including USD670 million in loans from China.