Ho Chi Minh City has set the groundbreaking ceremony for its second metro line: the Ben Thanh - Tham Luong route, on January 15, 2026, with construction starting across the full line the next day. Fully funded from the city’s own budget, the project’s latest approved cost is 52,047 billion VND, about 4 trillion higher from the previous budget. It aims to seamlessly connect with Metro Line 1.
The project at a glance
- Length: 11.27 km (200 metres longer than the original design)
- Underground: 9.255 km- three times longer than Line 1’s tunnels
- Stations: 11 (10 underground, one elevated at Tham Luong)
- Depot: A large new facility in ward Tân Thới Nhất
- Total investment: 52,047 billion VND
- Target opening: 2030
- Automation: GoA4- fully driverless, no staff on board
The line connects directly to Metro Line 1 at Bến Thành and runs through the city’s core areas - including the areas formerly known as districts 1, 3, 10, Tân Bình and Tân Phú prior to the administrative merger - creating HCMC’s first-ever interchange. When it opens in 2030, the line is expected to carry millions of passengers each day along the city’s vital east–west corridor. One detail still pending: the main EPC contractors and key construction packages have yet to be publicly named.
High risk of subsidence
Experts say construction of Line 2 will be considerably more difficult than the first. The underground section is triple the length, passing through soft, waterlogged soil, old utilities and densely built neighbourhoods. All of which raise the risk of subsidence and damage to nearby homes.
Site clearance is now almost complete, but a few tricky spots remain, including the former District 3 police headquarters. Long-term barricades on busy arteries like Cách Mạng Tháng Tám, Trường Chinh and the Phù Đổng roundabout will inevitably worsen congestion for years.
Prioritising domestic contractors is now feasible thanks to experience gained on Line 1, but the technical complexity remains a serious hurdle.
No foreign loans needed
This time the city has full control. With 100% local funding and special powers under National Assembly Resolution 98, HCMC is no longer tied to foreign loans or lengthy approvals, which is a world away from Line 1, which took nearly 20 years from idea to opening.
Vietnamese engineers have mastered shield tunnelling, the giant TBMs from Line 1 will be reused, and every hard lesson from that project is being applied from day one.
N.T.K, a construction company director in Ho Chi Minh City who was also one of the residents quick to hand over land, sums it up: “We believe this line will start and finish much faster than the first. We control the money, we have the experience, especially with tunnelling. Therefore, giving priority to Vietnamese contractors is realistic, no matter how tough it sounds.”
The line will also use the most advanced GoA4 automation, operating trains with zero drivers. With a smoother legal framework and full local control, Metro Line 2 is the breakthrough project. It is expected to demonstrate the potential of this new model and pave the way for the remaining lines needed to reach the city’s 355 km metro target by 2035, giving 8 to 10 million residents of Ho Chi Minh City a modern transit system.