Brussels, 06/12/2010 (Agence Europe) - The European Investment Bank (EIB) announced on Monday 6 December that it had granted a €150 million loan to Vietnam to finance the construction of a metro line in Ho Chi Minh City. The operation is designed to finance the construction of metro Line 2 in Ho Chi Minh City, the largest city in Vietnam and the most important with Hanoi. The new metro line will be over 11.3 km long and will have 11 stations and a new maintenance depot. The project includes the acquisition of new rolling stock for the line. The project is part of the blueprint for transport which includes the construction of further new metro lines. The aim is to sharply increase the modal share of public transport, taking it from 5% to over 40%. It will also help reduce transport-related pollution in the ever more congested agglomeration. The project is scheduled to by put into effect over the period from 2011 to 2018. (O.L./transl.rt)