The new Mien Dong Bus Station, the largest in the country, has officially opened in HCM City’s District 9 after nearly four years of construction (Photo: VNA) HCM City (VNA) -The new Mien Dong (Eastern) Bus Station, the country’s biggest bus station, hasbeen officially put in use in Ho Chi Minh City’s district 9 after nearlyfour years of construction.
The station launch hadbeen delayed many times due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The station at 501 Hoang HuuNam Street in district 9 covers 12.3 ha in district 9 and3.7ha in Di An town in the southern province of Binh Duong.
The Saigon TransportationMechanical Corporation (SAMCO), the station’s operator, said the newstation is nearly three times as big as the old one in Binh Thanh district.
It can serve about 21,000passengers per day with 1,200 buses, and during peak times, 52,000passengers and over 1,800 buses.
More than seven millionpassengers each year are expected to travel on 71 long-haul routes fromthe city to eastern provinces and localities in the central region andnorthern Vietnam.
Construction of the newfacility began in 2017, with a total cost of more than 4 trillion VND (172.6million USD).
The new station has four floorsand two underground basement floors, with waiting areas, pickup anddrop-off areas, transit and cargo trade areas, logistics services,parking areas and a wastewater treatment station.
It is a multi-functionalcomplex with a commercial centre, entertainment area, restaurants andother service areas.
Advanced technology isused for station management and operations.
In the first phase ofoperation, buses on 24 long-haul routes will run from the new facility to thecentral province of Quang Tri and northern provinces.
Buses will be allowedto pick up and drop off passengers at the old station for no morethan three months from the opening date of the new station while allnecessary procedures are being completed.
SAMCO General Director Tran QuocToan said the location of the new station is suited to urbandevelopment associated with the Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) model.
It will be an important traffichub, contributing to the development of the proposed smart cityof Thu Duc in HCM City's eastern area, he said.
The station will serve as atransit hub for passengers going to Long Thanh International Airport in DongNai province and as an international multimodal transport station tosome countries in Southeast Asia.
It is connectedto inner-city public bus routes and inter-provincial bus routes betweenHCM City and Dong Nai province.
It will also be connectedto the city’s Metro Line No 1, which will extend from Ben ThanhTerminal in district 1 to Suoi Tien Terminal in district 9.
It is expected to betterserve passenger demand and contribute to HCM City’s transportdevelopment.
The city has several mainbus stations, including Mien Tay (Western) Bus Station in Binh Tan district, AnSuong Bus Station in Hoc Mon district and Nga Tu Ga Bus Station in district12./.
VNA
