The Kyiv Metro ( uk, Ки́ївський метрополіте́н, Kyivskyi metropoliten, ) is a

rapid transit Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT), also known as heavy rail or metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport generally found in urban areas. A rapid transit system that primarily or traditionally runs below the surface may be c ...

system in

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

that is owned by the

Kyiv City Council Kyiv City Council ( uk, Київська міська рада, translit=Kyivska miska rada), also known as Kyivrada ( uk, Київрада), is the city council of Kyiv municipality, the highest representative body of the city community. The me ...

and operated by the city-owned company Kyivsky Metropoliten''.'' It was initially opened on November 6th, 1960, as a single line with five stations. It was the first rapid transit system in

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

and the third in the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

, after the

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

and St. Petersburg metros. Today, the system consists of three lines and 52 stations, located throughout Kyiv's ten

raion A raion (also spelt rayon) is a type of administrative unit of several post-Soviet states. The term is used for both a type of subnational entity and a division of a city. The word is from the French (meaning 'honeycomb, department'), and is co ...

(districts), and operates of routes, with used for revenue service and for non-revenue service. At below ground level, Arsenalna station on the Sviatoshynsko-Brovarska Line is the deepest train station in the world. In 2016, annual ridership for the metro was 484.56 million passengers, or about 1.32 million passengers daily. The metro accounted for 46.7% of Kyiv's public transport load in 2014.

Beginnings (1884-1920)

The first idea for an underground railway appeared in 1884. The project, which was given for analysis to the city council by the director of the

Southwestern railways Southwestern Railways (PZZ), ( uk, Південно-Західна залізниця) headquartered in Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, is a component part of the Ukrzaliznytsia company, its regional branch. It is named "Southwestern" because it ...

, Dmytro Andrievskiy, planned to create tunnels from

Kyiv-Pasazhyrskyi railway station Kyiv-Pasazhyrskyi (''Kyiv-Passenger'', uk, Київ-Пасажирський) is a railway station in the capital of Ukraine, Kyiv. The station is a railway hub consisting of several railroad station buildings, along with its own repair facilit ...

. The tunnel was expected to start near Poshtova square and finish near Bessarabka. A new railway station was to be built there, while the old railway station was to be converted into a freight railway station. The project was long discussed but eventually turned down by the city council. Kyiv was a pioneering city for

Imperial Russia The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the List of Russian monarchs, Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended th ...

n rapid transit, opening the first Russian tram system. In September 1916, businessmen of the Russo-American trading corporation attempted to collect funds to sponsor the construction of a metro in Kyiv. As a reason to construct it, the trading corporation wrote: Despite the arguments, the project was not accepted by the city council, again. Kyiv underground project 1916

After the downfall of the Tsarist government,

Hetman ( uk, гетьман, translit=het'man) is a political title from Central and Eastern Europe, historically assigned to military commanders. Used by the Czechs in Bohemia since the 15th century. It was the title of the second-highest military co ...

Skoropadsky was also interested in the building of a metro system, somewhere near the district of Zvirynets, where the government center was planned to be built. Skoropadsky argued: However, the project lost its support after the downfall of the Hetmanate in the autumn of 1918 and the change of the Ukrainian government towards the Directorate. Then, in 1919–1920, during the

Russian Civil War , date = October Revolution, 7 November 1917 – Yakut revolt, 16 June 1923{{Efn, The main phase ended on 25 October 1922. Revolt against the Bolsheviks continued Basmachi movement, in Central Asia and Tungus Republic, the Far East th ...

(in which Ukraine was involved), the project was shelved for good. Following the Bolsheviks' victory in the Russian Civil War, Kyiv became only a provincial city, and no large-scale proposals to improve the city were made.

Initial promotion

In 1934, the capital of the

Ukrainian SSR The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic ( uk, Украї́нська Радя́нська Соціалісти́чна Респу́бліка, ; russian: Украи́нская Сове́тская Социалисти́ческая Респ ...

was moved from

Kharkiv Kharkiv ( uk, wikt:Харків, Ха́рків, ), also known as Kharkov (russian: Харькoв, ), is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality in Ukraine.Moscow University of Transport Engineering, called, "The Project of the Kyiv Metro." The meeting minutes stated that "the author successfully resolved one of the problems of reconstruction of the city of Kyiv and establishment of intra-city transportation and also answered various practical questions about the Metro plan (the routes of the underground, the position of stations)." The engineer Papazov (Papazian) received a bonus of 1,000 Soviet rubles for this project from the City of Kyiv. However, it is unknown if his proposals were taken into account in the plan. A few days before, on July 5, the Kyiv newspaper ''Bil'shovyk'' published an article that featured a project of underground, prepared by engineers from the Transport Devices Institute in Ukraine's Soviet Socialist Republic's Academy of Sciences. The project promised to drill three lines of a subway approximately 50 km long. Rumors started spreading that the construction of the Metro would begin soon. At first, the city council denied these rumors, amid letters from the specialists in the drilling and mining sectors offering their services. But in 1938, officials started preparatory work. However, this stopped abruptly in 1941 with the start of the

Great Patriotic War The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of conflict between the European Axis powers against the Soviet Union (USSR), Poland and other Allies, which encompassed Central Europe, Eastern Europe, Northeast Europe (Baltics), and Sou ...

(

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

). By the end of the war, Kyiv was destroyed. Being the third largest city in the USSR, a massive reconstruction process was ordered. This time, the Metro was taken into account. Work continued in 1944, after Kyiv's liberation. On 5 August 1944, a resolution from the Soviet Union's Government was proclaimed. The resolution planned for underground construction, thus the government ordered the appropriate organizations to continue preparatory works, create a technical project, and estimate total costs. To finance this initial work, the USSR's National Commissariat of Finances allocated 1 million Soviet rubles from the Reserve Fund of the USSR's government. On 22 February 1945, another resolution was proclaimed, which definitively ordered the underground to be constructed. To determine where the underground construction was most suitable, experts from the Kyiv Office of Metrogiprotrans analyzed the flow of passengers in the streets of Kyiv, both in the city center and in the outskirts. The analysis revealed three suitable directions to construct the underground:

Sviatoshyn Sviatoshyn ( uk, Свято́шин, Svjatóshin, ; also or ) is a historical neighborhood and a suburb of Ukraine's capital Kyiv that is located on the western edge of the city area, in an eponymous municipality. Previously it was a dacha ...

–

Brovary Brovary ( uk, Бровари, , yi, בראָוואַר, Brovar) is a city in Kyiv Oblast (Region) in northern Ukraine, an eastern suburb of the country's capital, Kyiv. It is the administrative centre of Brovary Raion (district). Brovar ...

Kurenivka Kurenivka or Kurenyovka ( uk, Куренівка; russian: Куренёвка, translit.: ''Kurenyovka'') is a historical neighbourhood in Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. It is located between the neighbourhoods of Podil, Obolon, Priorka, and Sy ...

–Demiyivka, and Syrets– Pechersk. The former two were chosen to be built. It was decided that the first section of underground openings along these two directions— in length—would be constructed by 1950. This plan, however, did not come to life. The final preparations were not conducted until 1949. By the decision of the Ministry of Communication, the Kyivmetrobud enterprise was established on 14 April. Only then did the underground construction finally begin.

Construction

First phase

Construction of the first line (M1) of the Kyiv Metro began in August 1949. The initial plan had seven stations, and a project design competition for the stations was announced in 1952. The competition commission wanted all seven stations to have a Stalinist style: richly decorated and adorned with Communist symbols and national (Ukrainian) motifs. However, the competition was cancelled, partly due to the cancellation of the two westernmost stations and partly due to

Khrushchev Thaw The Khrushchev Thaw ( rus, хрущёвская о́ттепель, r=khrushchovskaya ottepel, p=xrʊˈɕːɵfskəjə ˈotʲ:ɪpʲɪlʲ or simply ''ottepel'')William Taubman, Khrushchev: The Man and His Era, London: Free Press, 2004 is the period ...

, which made the Stalinist style inappropriate. Tunnel drilling is frequently met with unanticipated difficulties—such as unexpected drilling terrain and underground water sources—causing the construction to fall severely behind schedule. In December 1951, the first connection between separate tunnels was made between Dnipro and Arsenalna stations, while the last was created between the Vokzalna and Universytet stations, in May 1959. Various difficulties arose during the construction of the underground. For example, Arsenalna station was constantly flooded by underground waters despite its exceptional depth, which was originally intended to prevent flooding. Moreover, the project came to a standstill in 1954 when funding was instead allocated to the development of unused land fit for agriculture. Nevertheless, work progressed. Vokzalna metro station in Kyiv

At the beginning of 1958, a competition for the best design of stations was announced. A commission analyzing the works was created, consisting of activists, engineering and architecture experts from both the Ukrainian SSR and the USSR, sculptors, artists, writers, and the heads of the organizations Glavtunelstroy, Metrogiprotrans, and Kyivmetrobud. In July, an exhibition of 80 works was organized. The best five designs were used for the first five stations of the Kyiv Metro: Vokzalna, Universytet,

Khreshchatyk Khreshchatyk ( uk, Хрещатик, ) is the main street of Kyiv, Ukraine. The street has a length of . It stretches from the European Square (northeast) through the Maidan and to Bessarabska Square (southwest) where the Besarabsky Market ...

, Arsenalna, and Dnipro. During this construction, of concrete was poured, and of granite and marble were used to decorate the stations. On 22 October 1960, a test run was made by Alexey Semagin, a motorman of the Moscow Metro, and Ivan Vynogradov, the former train operator from the central railway station of Kyiv-Pasazhyrskyi. Semagin drove, with Vynogradov acting as an assistant. On 6 November 1960, the anniversary of the

October Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key moment ...

, the five-station, 5.24 km Vokzalna–Dnipro portion of the east-west line (today known as the Sviatoshynsko-Brovarska Line) was opened. That day, the motormen changed their places, and thus Ivan Vynogragov has now been deemed the first motorman of the Kyiv Metro.

Opening and aftermath

The underground was not available to the public the same day the line was declared open. During the first week, special passes had to be shown to ride the newly opened section. True public service only started on 13 November. At the time, the stations had no

turnstile A turnstile (also called a turnpike, gateline, baffle gate, automated gate, turn gate in some regions) is a form of gate which allows one person to pass at a time. A turnstile can be configured to enforce one-way human traffic. In addition, a ...

s; the tickets were shown to the inspector. Immediately after the Kyiv Metro's opening, the need for a

train depot A train station, railway station, railroad station or depot is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track and a station building providing su ...

became a problem. It was not feasible to construct a permanent on-ground depot as the stations were deep underground. Yet the creation of an underground depot was costly. At first, it was solved by creating a temporary depot next to Dnipro station, where Kyivmetrobud had its headquarters at the time. There were some warehouses constructed as well so that necessary items could be substituted if needed. Unfortunately, this temporary depot was not connected to the main underground line. To move trains to the depot, an overhead crane was used.Загадки подземки на сайте «Интересный Киев»
Simultaneously, another logistics problem appeared: there was no connection between the underground and the railway. At the time, the metro line was served by type Д underground trains (produced by

Metrowagonmash Metrowagonmash, also Metrovagonmash (russian: ОАО "Метровагонмаш", OAO "Metrovagonmash"), is an engineering company in Mytishchi, Russia. Metrowagonmash (MWM) is one of the leading enterprises in Russia operating in the ...

). To deliver them to the underground, the trains had to be placed on a special carriage at

Darnytsia railway station , native_name_lang = , type = , style = , image = Приміський вокзал Дарниця.jpg , image_size = , image_caption = Commuter terminal , address = 3 Pryvokzalna St., Kyiv , country ...

. The carriage was then transported by trams (via the now non-existing tram line along the

Dnieper } The Dnieper () or Dnipro (); , ; . is one of the major transboundary rivers of Europe, rising in the Valdai Hills near Smolensk, Russia, before flowing through Belarus and Ukraine to the Black Sea. It is the longest river of Ukraine and B ...

river) to the temporary depot, where the trains were then lifted onto the

railway turntable In rail terminology, a railway turntable or wheelhouse is a device for turning railway rolling stock, usually locomotives, so that they can be moved back in the direction from which they came. Naturally, it is especially used in areas where ec ...

. Since the procedure was uncomfortable and tedious, most trains rested overnight in the tunnels and arrived at the depot only to be checked for repairs and repaired. At the time, the Kyiv Metro was under the jurisdiction of the USSR's Ministry of Communication, and not of Kyiv's city council. Until 1962, the motormen were mostly from

, as no institution provided appropriate education in Ukraine. Some Kyiv railway engineers were employed (such as Vynogragov), but they had to qualify for motormen in Moscow.

Extension of the first line

The second stage of construction of the first line started in 1960, and finished on 5 November 1963, with the opening of a section with two stations: Politekhnichnyi Instytut and Zavod Bilshovyk (now Shuliavska station). A year later, new type E underground trains were introduced. SBL-Grund-2005

In 1965, the line crossed the Dnieper river on the newly constructed Kyiv Metro Bridge and Rusanivskyi Metropolitan Bridge and was extended to the large residential areas being built along the east bank of the river. Like the Dnipro station, Hydropark, Livoberezhna, and

Darnytsia Darnytskyi District ( uk, Дарницький район, ), is an urban district of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv. It is the southeastern district of Kyiv located on the left bank of Dnipro river. It borders the Holosiivskyi District of the city t ...

stations all were built on-ground. Additionally, to resolve the question of a temporary depot, a permanent depot ( Darnytsia Metro Depot) was built between Livoberezhna and Darnytsia stations; importantly, it had access to Kyiv-Dniprovskyi railway station. New trains could now be easily transported immediately into the depot, which, having a connection with the metro line, could also easily host trains. A few developments were made to the old stations. Since Khreshchatyk station was opened with only one exit, a second one was built and opened on 4 September 1965. A third exit was finished in May 1970. While being modernized, the station was lengthened by 40 meters. Further extension of the first line to the east was made in 1968, when Komsomolska station (now Chenihivska station) was opened, along with another facility where the trains could be repaired. When it was discovered that Leningrad's Metro E-type underground trains were not suitable for the platform screen doors of new stations under construction, they were delivered to Kyiv in 1969; meanwhile, Kyiv's older D-type trains, which did not have any problems with these new stations, were transported to Leningrad. In 1970, an additional carriage was added to every train, for a total of four. A fifth was added two years later. Since 1972, the number of carriages has remained constant (as of 4 July 2017). On 5 November 1971, Kyiv's then-westernmost neighborhoods were connected to the underground. Three new stations were opened: Zhovtneva (now Beresteiska),

Nyvky Nyvky () is a neighbourhood in Kyiv, Ukraine. It belongs to Shevchenkivskyi District of Kyiv. It is surrounded by Svyatoshyn (Sviatoshynskyi District) to the west, Shuliavka to the south-east, Vidradnyi (Solomianskyi District) to the south, Sy ...

, and Sviatoshyno (now with the "o" removed). Thus, the underground was extended to 14 stations and a length of . On 23 August 1972, the billionth passenger of the Kyiv underground entered the Arsenalna station. The worker of the "Arsenal" factory was given a yearly ticket in the underground as a present on such an occasion. Finally, in 1973–1974, another modernization of the underground was made, the third to the rolling stock. New type Eм underground trains from Leningrad's train building facility were delivered to Kyiv. Further extensions on this line occurred in 1978 (with Pionerska station, now Lisova) and 2003 (with Zhytomyrska and Akademmistechko stations).

Second line

Construction of the second line (M2) began in 1971. The line became known as "Kurenivsko-Chervonoarmiyska"; however, the name did not completely correspond to the actual route, as it does not pass via Kurenivka. In mid-1960, when plans for the line were made, the construction was expected to go towards Kurenivka and Priorka, connecting Zavodska station (instead of today's Tarasa Shevchenka), Petropavlivska station near Kurenivskyi park, and Shevhenka Square station under the square. However, as the decision to create the Obolon residential district was made, these plans changed. The new line was constructed in the open and its stations were not constructed deep underground. Because of this, historical buildings were demolished in the

Podil Podil ( uk, Поділ) or the Lower cityIvankin, H., Vortman, D. Podil (ПОДІЛ)'. Encyclopedia of History of Ukraine. is a historic neighborhood in Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. It is located on a floodplain terrace over the Dnieper betwe ...

neighborhood. During construction, archaeologists discovered a house dated from Kyivs'ka Rus' (879–1240) under the Red Square (now

Kontraktova Square Square of Contracts or Contract Square ( uk, Контрактова площа, translit.: ''Kontraktova ploshcha'') is a square in the historic Podil neighborhood of Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. The square is an important economic, cultural, ...

). The discovery helped historians understand the life of Podil inhabitants in the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

at a much more profound scale. This archaeological research was one of the reasons the underground construction was suspended, which is why the small stretch was opened only on 17 December 1976. It contained three stations: Kalinina Square (later renamed to Ploshcha Zhovtnevoi Revolutsii () on 17 October 1977 for the upcoming 60th anniversary of the October Revolution; now

Maidan Nezalezhnosti Maidan Nezalezhnosti ( uk, Майдан Незалежності , literally "Independence Square") is the central square of Kyiv, the capital city of Ukraine. One of the city's main squares, it is located on Khreshchatyk Street in the Shevchen ...

), Poshtova Ploshcha, and Chervona Ploshcha. Additionally, there was a repair facility near Chervona Ploshcha and a transfer corridor to the older (M1) line, separate for trains and passengers. This corridor allowed the exchange of rolling stock, and more importantly, allowed trains on the new line to access the Darnytsia depot until a new one appeared in 1988. Simultaneously, an extension on the first line was made eastward. In 1978, Pionerska station was opened, which might have been the next step towards the realization of Stalin times projects (the line was planned to be extended to

, the

satellite town Satellite cities or satellite towns are smaller municipalities that are adjacent to a principal city which is the core of a metropolitan area. They differ from mere suburbs, subdivisions and especially bedroom communities in that they have m ...

of Kyiv).Nevertheless, construction on the first line came to a halt, and, as of 4 July 2017, there were no plans yet to extend the line eastwards beyond Lisova station, so construction efforts were shifted to the second line. Heroiv Dnipra metro station Kiev 2011 01

Heroiv Dnipra metro station Kiev 2011 01

The second line—which became known as the Kurenivsko-Chervonoarmiyska line (today the Obolonsko–Teremkivska line)—continued expanding. On 19 December 1980, three new stations— Tarasa Shevchenka, Petrivka (now Pochaina station), and Prospekt Korniychuka (now Obolon station)—were opened on the northern part of the line. After another two years, the Minska and Heroiv Dnipra stations were added to the second line, on the 55th anniversary of the October Revolution. This connected the then-largest residential district of Kyiv to the rapid transit network. Construction did not stop at the southern end of the line. Ploshcha Lva Tolstoho and Respublikanskyi Stadion (now Olimpiiska station) were opened on 19 December 1981, followed by Chervonoarmiiska (now Palats "Ukrayina" station) and Dzerzhynska (now Lybidska station) on 30 December 1984. Construction then started to the southwest of the newly opened terminus but was soon interrupted by an accident while workers were drilling through the difficult terrain under the Lybid river. Further work only continued 21 years later, in the summer of 2005.

Infrastructure development

In 1980, while the construction of the M2 line was at its height, the new rolling stock from Metrowagonmash (

81-717/714 81-717/714 is a metro car designed in the Soviet Union in the mid-1970s. The cars were made from 1976 to 2010 by Metrovagonmash and the I. E. Yegorov Vagonmash factories of Mytishchi and Saint Petersburg, respectively. Production is still ongoing ...

) started to be used. In 1985, a new train repair plant was built, first called ОМ-2. Additionally, once it appeared that the corridor between October Revolution Square and Khreshchatyk was not able to cope with the stream of passengers, a second corridor was built (informally called the "long" corridor), opening on 3 December 1986. The same year, disambiguation to the Darnytsia depot was made (three tracks were made, of which two are for passenger traffic, while the third was supposed to let the trains exit the depot). On 30 December 1987, the second (eastern) exit from the Hydropark station was built and opened only in summer. Lastly, on 19 March 1988, a new depot (called the Obolon Depot) was created to serve the M2 line.

Third line

Soviet period

Zoloti Vorota metro station Kiev 2010 01

The first event connected with the construction of the third line (M3) was the creation of a new tunnel on the M1 line between the Vokzalna and Khreshchatyk stations. In the middle of it, a new station, Leninska, was to arise, specially designed as a transfer hub to the future M3 line. When the new tunnel was ready to be connected to the rest of the line, service in the old M1 tunnel between Vokzalna and Khreshchatyk was interrupted from 31 March to 1 October 1987. During this time, two

shuttle train A shuttle train is a train that runs back and forth between two points, especially if it offers a frequent service over a short route. Shuttle trains are used in various ways, in various parts of the world. They commonly operate as a fixed consi ...

s carried passengers from Vokzalna to Universytet stations, and the tunnel between Universytet and Khreshchatyk was closed. To manage passengers, additional temporary lines of

bus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...

es and

trolleybus A trolleybus (also known as trolley bus, trolley coach, trackless trolley, trackless tramin the 1910s and 1920sJoyce, J.; King, J. S.; and Newman, A. G. (1986). ''British Trolleybus Systems'', pp. 9, 12. London: Ian Allan Publishing. .or trol ...

es were created. The Leninska station itself was inaugurated on the 70th anniversary of the October Revolution, on 6 November 1987, and is now known as Teatralna station. The older tunnels, over each, partially cut by the ceiling of the Zoloti Vorota station, still exist and are now accessible only for maintenance by staff. Construction of the third line (called the Syretsko-Pecherska Line, the northwest-southeast axis) started in 1981. The initial segment was finished on 31 December 1989 and featured three stations: Zoloti Vorota, Palats Sportu, and Mechnikova (now Klovska). The first two were transfer hubs to other lines; the third was the start of a technical tunnel between lines M2 and M3, which allowed trains from the M3 line to use the Obolon depot on the M2 line. Until 30 April 1990, the exit from Zoloti Vorota station (the then-northern terminus of M3) was only possible via Leninska station. An exit from Zoloti Vorota onto Volodymyrska Street was only opened on 1 May 1990. A total of 31 stations and of passenger tunnels were constructed during the first 31 years of the subway system in the Ukrainian SSR.

Post-independence

Despite severe economic problems at the dawn of Ukrainian independence, momentum on the Kyiv Metro construction was not lost. On 30 December 1991, Druzhby Narodiv and Vydubychi stations were opened ( Pecherska station was opened six years later, on 27 December 1997, since its construction had to be frozen due to hydrotechnical problems). In 1992, the line crossed the Dnieper river to

Slavutych Slavutych ( uk, Славу́тич) is a city and municipality in northern Ukraine, purpose-built for the evacuated personnel of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant after the 1986 disaster that occurred near the city of Pripyat. Geographically l ...

and Osokorky stations via the Pivdennyi Bridge. Initially, this bridge (which was open from the sides) was intended to be covered by an

aluminium Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. I ...

construction, but this was found to be ineffective protection against snow and rain. While the construction of the bridge segment was in progress, Telychka station was also under construction. However, due to factory closures in the surrounding heavily industrialized area, the station construction site was abandoned. What remains of it now is a platform and a

ventilation shaft In subterranean civil engineering, ventilation shafts, also known as airshafts or vent shafts, are vertical passages used in mines and tunnels to move fresh air underground, and to remove stale air. In architecture, an airshaft is a small, ...

, so the station can be used in emergency cases (e.g. a fire or train breakdown). Two years later (on 28 December 1994), the M3 line was further extended to the east, when Pozniaky and Kharkivska stations were revealed to the public. Pozniaky station was the first distinctly three-floor underground station in Kyiv; the lower floor was used by the underground, while the middle and the top floors were used by small market stalls. This structure later enabled the station to easily become a transfer hub for the upcoming Livoberezhna line (M5) by replacing the stalls with passenger transfer areas. The opening of these stations was crucial for the rapidly developing Poznyaky and Kharkivskyi residential districts. In the mid-1990s, construction of a northwestern expansion to the older Syrets' district began, with the first extension made on 30 December 1996. Then, Lukyanivska station became the new terminus of the line. Lvivska Brama station was also built (between Zoloti Vorota and Lukyanivska), but its construction came to a halt in 1997 due to a lack of money and disagreement on how Lvivska Square should be reconstructed. On 30 March 2000, the next station on the line, Dorohozhychi, was opened. Another station, Hertsena station (situated between Lukyanivska and Dorohozhychi stations), was also planned—even potentially under initial construction—but ultimately abandoned. Neither the current official scheme (see below) nor th
earlier one
indicates this station. Four years later, on 14 October 2004, the M3 line was further extended to the northwest, ending at Syrets station (still the current terminus of the line). At the same time, works were done on the southeastern stretch of the line, with Boryspilska station opening on 23 August 2005 and Vyrlytsia opening on 7 March 2006. At first, Vyrlytsia was only an emergency exit, and the station was not planned to be built. However, the City Council later decided, in November 2005, to convert the exit into a full station, which is the reason why this station has side platforms. On 23 August 2007, the third and newest depot in the Kyiv Metro— Kharkivske Depot—was opened. In September 2005, construction began on Chervonyi Khutir station, the last station on the M3 line. In April 2007, the

Mayor of Kyiv The Head of Kyiv City ( uk, Київський міський голова, translit=Kyivskyi miskyi holova), unofficially and more commonly the Mayor of Kyiv ( uk, Мер Києва, translit=Mer Kyieva), is a city official elected by popular ...

, Leonid Chernovetskyi, fearing the station will have low ridership, claimed the station would be subject to conservation, as "animals do not ride in the underground" (he meant that the station was situated literally in the forest, with not many buildings nearby, so there were no people to use the station). Nevertheless, the works continued, and, after a few months' delay, the station opened on 23 May 2008, for the Kyiv Day celebration. The timing coincided with the upcoming mayoral elections on 25 May 2008. This station still has the lowest ridership in the Kyiv Metro.

The final phase (1991–2013)

Until the 2000s, the M1 line terminated at

station (renamed in 1993 from Sviatoshyno station) at the western end. However, new apartments had emerged since 1971, mostly in Bilychi and western Sviatoshyn, which created a need for an extension of the line to the housing facilities. Construction of the final section of today's M1 line started in the fall of 2000. Zhytomyrska station and Akademmistechko station were built, with delays due to irregular financing. Peremohy Avenue was partially closed from 14 January 2001 to 25 December 2002, to construct the tunnels beneath the street. This final extension of the M1 line was opened on 24 May 2003. Construction of the southwestern segment of the M2 line restarted in the summer of 2005, 21 years after the Lybid river accident. Difficult terrain made the work fall behind the schedule, partly due to accidents (such as one on January 2006 during the construction of the Demiivska station). On 15 December 2010, Demiivska, Holosiivska, and Vasylkivska stations were opened. The 50th station, Vystavkovyi Tsentr, was unveiled a year later, on 27 December 2011. Ipodrom followed suit on 25 October 2012. Initially, Ipodrom was planned to be opened together with

Teremky Teremky ( uk, Теремки) is a neighborhood located in the Holosiivskyi district of Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. It is located in the southern part of the city, in between the city's Holosiivskyi, Feofaniia, and Zhuliany neighborhoods. T ...

station in November 2012, but, with the lack of financing and lagging behind the schedule, only Ipodrom was opened by then (ahead of schedule, partly thanks to funds reallocation, and partly because of the 2012 parliamentary elections due for 28 October). The Ipodrom–Teremky section would wait for underground construction funds until 2013. As there was no turnaround option for trains there, a

drove between Vystavkovyi Tsentr and Ipodrom stations until Teremky station was opened on 6 November 2013, to commemorate the 70th anniversary of Kyiv's liberation. As of 2019, this was the last extension or opening of any underground-connected facility (not taking into account the opening of the second exit from Osokorky station, which was built together with the station but opened only in 2014).

Modernization

Rolling stock

In the 1990s, the Kyiv Metro authority was mostly concerned with new underground construction, rather than old infrastructure modernization. This changed in March 2001, when an experimental modification of

trains, the Slavutych 81-553.1/554.1/555.1 wagon, was launched from Obolon depot. It included an increased number of electronic devices and induction motors (instead of

synchronous motor A synchronous electric motor is an AC electric motor in which, at steady state, the rotation of the shaft is synchronized with the frequency of the supply current; the rotation period is exactly equal to an integral number of AC cycles. Syn ...

s in earlier series). The train model, however, was not released into

mass production Mass production, also known as flow production or continuous production, is the production of substantial amounts of standardized products in a constant flow, including and especially on assembly lines. Together with job production and batch ...

, so the test train remained the only one from its series. This experimental 81-553.1 train is still operated on the Obolonsko–Teremkivska line between 7-10 a.m. on weekdays. The modification of

(81-717.5М/714.5М) trains arrived three years later at the Darnytsia depot. Another modification of the 81-717/714 series, the 81-7021–7022, made by the Kryukiv wagon-manufacturing plant (KVBZ), would be the first underground train made in Ukraine in the Kyiv Metro. This new model was first unveiled to the then-

President of Ukraine The president of Ukraine ( uk, Президент України, Prezydent Ukrainy) is the head of state of Ukraine. The president represents the nation in international relations, administers the foreign political activity of the state, condu ...

Viktor Yushchenko Viktor Andriyovych Yushchenko ( uk, Віктор Андрійович Ющенко, ; born 23 February 1954) is a Ukrainian politician who was the third president of Ukraine from 23 January 2005 to 25 February 2010. As an informal leader of th ...

, at the opening of the Boryspilska station. Five months later, a sample was sent to the Darnytsia depot for trials, where an error was detected. Further tests were conducted from 17 June 2006 in the Obolon depot. Finally, in July 2008, the trains were accepted by the governmental commission and were given a special license allowing them to be mass-produced (following Ukrainian technical standards). They started carrying passengers in 2009. 81-7021–7022 trains were supposed to substitute the older 81-717/714 trains, but, as of 5 July 2017, there was only one train of such a model. The next modified trains, 81-540.2К/81-714.5М, made by Wagonmash ( St. Peterburg) and

, are another modification of

, arrived in 2010, with additional trains set on rails in 2013. Finally, in 2014–2016, new 81-7080 trains were transported from KVBZ to the Kyiv Metro, which is now actively used on the M1 line.

Stations

In October 2005, new escalators were installed in Lisova and Syrets stations, as a movement for modernization in the former case, and the latter as part of a

pylon station A metro station or subway station is a station for a rapid transit system, which as a whole is usually called a "metro" or "subway". A station provides a means for passengers to purchase tickets, board trains, and evacuate the system in th ...

's equipment. The following year, Darnytsia station was modernized, and a second exit (towards Popudrenka Street) was built. In March-May 2017, a ₴24.84 million

hryven' The or ( ; uk, гривня , : ''hrn''; sign: ₴; code: UAH) has been the national currency of Ukraine since 2 September 1996. The hryvnia is divided into 100 . It is named after a measure of weight used in medieval Kievan Rus'. Name Ety ...

(USD$ 915,900) refurbishment of Livoberezhna station was made due to the second Eurovision session in Kyiv.

Wartime use

People on a metro station during Russian invasion, Kyiv, 2022

The Metro was built in the wake of World War II. During the

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...

, the metro stations doubled as bomb shelters, as residents took shelter from Russian bombs. Like other former Soviet metro systems, the Kyiv metro was designed with this purpose in mind, and 47 of the city's 52 stations were designated for this purpose. During the invasion, on February 24, regular service on the metro was suspended. A reduced schedule was adopted with limited services running between 8:00 and 19:00. All underground stations remain open 24 hours a day to provide shelter. According to

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

Vitali Klitschko Vitali Volodymyrovych Klitschko (; uk, Віта́лій Володи́мирович Кличко́ ; born 19 July 1971) is a Ukrainian politician and former professional boxer who serves as mayor of KyivThe lines' names are derived from the terminal stations proposed in the original 1945 construction plan, which is why the M1 line is called "Sviatoshynsko–Brovarska", despite finishing 11 kilometers short of

's city center (the official Metro site says "the extension to Brovary is possible in far future"). Similarly, the M2 line's route does not pass through Kurenivka. In February 2018, the Kyiv City Council renamed the M2 line from "Kurenivsko–Chervonoarmiyska" to "Obolonsko–Teremkivska". Colloquially, lines are rarely referred to by their full names, but rather by their numbers or colors (e.g. the "Syretsko–Pecherska line" is usually referred to as "The Third line" or "The Green line").

Line 1 ( Sviatoshynsko-Brovarska)

The Sviatoshynsko–Brovarska line is the first line of the Kyiv Metro, with a length of . All of its stations on the eastern bank of the

river are either at or above ground level, this is attributed to a similar experiment to Moscow's

Filyovskaya Line The Filyovskaya line (russian: Филёвская ли́ния, ), or Line 4 and 4A, is a line of the Moscow Metro. Chronologically the sixth to open, it connects the major western districts of Dorogomilovo and Fili along with the Moscow-City ...

. The milder Ukrainian climate, however, prevented these stations from severely deteriorating, which was why extensions in 1968 and 1979 were kept from going underground. The five original stations on this line managed to survive

Nikita Khrushchev Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev (– 11 September 1971) was the First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964 and chairman of the country's Council of Ministers from 1958 to 1964. During his rule, Khrushchev s ...

's struggle with decorative "extras", although more pompous projects were proposed in Stalin's time. These five stations are recognized as architectural monuments and thus are protected by the state. The M1 line is colored red on maps and carries about 550,000 passengers daily, making it the busiest line.

Line 2 ( Obolonsko–Teremkivska)

The Obolonsko–Teremkivska line was the second line of the Kyiv Metro, with a length of . Initially, it extends southwards along the right bank of the Dnieper river but deviates from the river towards the southwest beyond Lybidska station. Most of this line's stations were built in the 1970s and 1980s. Architecturally, the line shows some of the best examples of late-Soviet architectural features (with Lybidska station being an architectural monument protected by the state). The line's newest stations, built-in 2010–2013, are a good example of modern stations with national decoration motifs (such as at Teremky station) and have access for disabled persons. The M2 line is colored blue on maps and carries more than 460,000 passengers daily.

Line 3 ( Syretsko-Pecherska)

The Syretsko-Pecherska Line is the third and longest line in the Kyiv Metro, with a length of . It is a major northwest-southeast axis of the Kyiv rapid transit system. It starts on the western side of the Dnieper river before crossing it on a partially covered bridge and then going on to the southeastern residential districts of Kyiv. The line is the newest and shows some post-independence decorative motifs. Technically, it is also a great development, with most of the platforms longer and wider than older sections and with some stations having access for disabled persons. The Vydubychi–Slavutych tunnel is the longest in the Kyiv Metro, as separates the two stations. This is partial because several stations were not completed—two stations had construction suspended (and never finished) while another station was only planned. The M3 line is colored green on maps and carries more than 300,000 passengers daily.

Stations

The Kyiv Metro follows a standard Soviet design: a triangular layout of three lines that intersect in the city center, making six radii, and stations that are built very deep underground and could potentially double as

bomb shelter A bomb shelter is a structure designed to provide protection against the effects of a bomb. Types of shelter Different kinds of bomb shelters are configured to protect against different kinds of attack and strengths of hostile explosives. Air ...

Technical data

Currently, there are 52 stations. There are 20 deep-lying stations, of which 17 are of pylon type (including Arsenalna station, the only "London style" station in the former USSR still in existence) and 3 are of column type. Of the 26 sub-surface stations, 13 stations are of pillar-trispan type, 3 are side-platform pillar bi-spans, 8 are single-vaults, and 3 are asymmetrical double-deck bi-spans. In addition, 6 stations are located above ground; of these, four are surface level and two are flyover. Most of the stations have large vestibules, some on the surface level whilst others are underground and interlinked via subways. Access for disabled persons, previously overlooked, has become an important issue, and all new stations have been constructed with the necessary provisions. Arsenalna station is distinguished as the deepest station in the world, at 105.5 m below ground (considering the distance between the surface above the station and the station itself). Dnipro, the next station proceeding towards Dnieper, is overground, which gives the Dnipro–Arsenalna tunnel the largest elevation difference between metro stations in the world, considering the surface's

relative height In topography, prominence (also referred to as autonomous height, relative height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop or relative height in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contou ...

. There are three unfinished stations: Lvivska Brama, Telychka, and Hertsena, all of which are on the green M3 line. Hertsena had only the initial stages of construction completed, while the former two are more advanced in construction (about 30–70% completed) but lack conventional exits. Kyiv Metro is poorly adapted for handicapped persons. Only stations constructed after 2005 are better adapted for handicapped people; for example, they have elevators and turnstiles wide enough for a wheelchair to pass.

Architecture

Like all the Metro systems of the former

, the Kyiv Metro is known for its vivid and colorful decorations. The original stations from the first stage of construction are elaborately decorated, showing the postwar Stalinist architecture blended with traditional Ukrainian motifs. Many first projects for stations offered at the beginning of the 1950s were full of rich decorative elements such as

mosaic A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...

s, ornaments,

bas-relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term ''relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that the ...

sculpture Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

s, and

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite. Marble is typically not Foliation (geology), foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the ...

. Each station was to have its original shape. These stations were to be constructed in a monumental style like those stations built throughout the 1950s in Moscow and Leningrad. For example, Arsenalna station, instead of a small central hall, should have had a wide hall with sculptures of warriors of the civil and great patriotic wars; Vokzalna station was to be decorated with ornaments and bas-reliefs on columns and a big decorative map of the

; and, based on its first project drawings, Politeckhnichniy Institut station was to have large mosaic panels depicting aspects of the natural sciences. Universytet metro station Kiev 2010 Mendeleev

Universytet metro station Kiev 2010 Mendeleev

By the end of the 1950s, a period of functionality and struggle against architectural extravagances had begun in Soviet architecture. This action, propagated by Khrushchev, resulted in the loss of many unique projects, with the resulting stations being finished with few decorations, compared to the 1952 projects. Universytet station, however, was less simplified than many others and retained its many pylons adorned with the busts of famous scientists and writers. The next stations which opened in 1963 had an ascetic and strict appearance. Open-air stations of the 1960s and the underground stations of 1971 were built to a standard primitive design called ''sorokonozhka'' (), named for the many thin supports on both sides of the platform. Functionality became the most important factor in newer designs, and stations built at that time were almost identical in appearance, save the design of tile patterns and pillar covering material. Only in the 1970s did decorative architecture start to make a recovery. The stations built from the 1980s onwards show more innovative designs when compared with stations of the same era in other cities of the former USSR. Some older stations have undergone upgrades to lighting and renovation of some decorative materials. After the

declaration Declaration may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''Declaration'' (book), a self-published electronic pamphlet by Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri * ''The Declaration'' (novel), a 2008 children's novel by Gemma Malley Music ...

Ukrainian independence Ukraine emerged as the concept of a nation, and the Ukrainians as a nationality, with the Ukrainian National Revival which began in the late 18th and early 19th century. The first wave of national revival is traditionally connected with the publ ...

following the

dissolution of the Soviet Union The dissolution of the Soviet Union, also negatively connoted as rus, Разва́л Сове́тского Сою́за, r=Razvál Sovétskogo Soyúza, ''Ruining of the Soviet Union''. was the process of internal disintegration within the Sov ...

in 1991, some of the Soviet symbols originally incorporated into decor were adapted to modern times or removed altogether by altering the station's architecture. Most remaining (if not all) Soviet symbols were later removed due to 2015 decommunization laws.

Passenger flow

As of 2015, Lisova was the busiest station in the Kyiv Metro, passing an average of 58,500 passengers per day, with Vokzalna following second with 55,900. The congestion at Vokzalna station, especially during rush hours, is particularly problematic due to the station having only 3 escalators and only one access point for entering and exiting the station. Akademmistechko is third at 51,100. These are the only stations that handle more than 50,000 passengers per day. The next busiest, Livoberezhna, passes 48,100 passengers per day. All four of these busiest stations are on the red M1 line. The fifth busiest station is Pochaina with 46,200 passengers per day (on the blue M2 line), with Minska not far behind at 45,500. On the Syretsko-Pecherska line, the busiest station is Lukyanivska, with just under 40,000. In contrast, the least busy station in the system is the Dnipro station (M1), with only 2,800 passengers per day. Chervonyi Khutir (M3) is another station with a daily passenger flow of less than 5,000. The emptiest station on the M2 line is Poshtova Ploshcha, with 8,900 passengers per day.

Transfer hubs to other lines and other means of rapid transit

Vokzalna station is one of the most important transport hubs in the Kyiv Metro. It gives direct access to the

, the largest train station in Ukraine, as well as to the

Kyiv Light Rail Kyiv Light Rail or Kyiv Express Tram ( uk, Київський швидкісний трамвай, translit.: ''Kyivs’kyi shvydkisnyi tramvai'') is a light rail rapid transit service that serves the Ukrainian capital Kyiv. The system is grade ...

line to

Borshchahivka Borshchahivka ( uk, Борщагі́вка; russian: Борщаго́вка) is a neighborhood located to the west and south-west of Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine. It is part of the city's Sviatoshynskyi District. The neighborhood is named after ...

and the

Kyiv Urban Electric Train The Kyiv Urban Electric Train ( uk, Київська міська електричка, translit=Kyivska miska elektrychka) is an urban rail transit passenger service in Kyiv, Ukraine. The service is operated by Ukrainian Railways and Kyivpastrans ...

ring. Additional important transport hubs include Demiivska station (to the Kyiv Central bus station); Vystavkovyi Tsentr and Lisova stations (mostly to suburban buses, but to the Pivdenna and Darnytsia bus stations as well, respectively); and Livoberezhna, Darnytsia, and Pochaina stations, used by commuting passengers from

Troieshchyna Troieshchyna (, uk, Троєщина, lit=Trinity, translit=Troyeshchyna) also known as Vyhurivschyna-Troieshchyna since 1997 (, uk, Вигурівщина-Троєщина) is a large neighborhood of Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, the biggest ...

(the largest residential district in Kyiv).

Distribution of stations across the city

Metro stations cover all 10 subdivisions of Kyiv; however, their spread is uneven. Shevchenkivskyi district has the most, at 13 stations; Pecherskyi and Holosiivskyi ''raions'' both boast 11 stops; Darnytskyi district has 7; Obolonskyi, Sviatoshynskyi, and Dniprovskyi districts each feature 4; Podilskyi district offers 3; and Desnyanskyi ''raion'', despite being the most populous district in Kyiv, is relatively deprived of Metro connections, with only 2 stations. This distribution reveals that the western side of Kyiv contains the majority of stations (including the M2 line, which does not cross to the eastern side of the Dnieper). Only 12 stations reside in the eastern part of the city, compared to 40 on the western side.

Rolling stock

As of 2016, there were 824 wagons in operation, with another 5 spares. Most of the wagons are from the Soviet era, largely from the

series and some trains from the D-type and E-type series. The stock, however, is refreshed. The "Slavutych" trains began to replace the old trains of predominantly 81/7021-7022, 81-540.2К/81-714.5М, and 81–7080 series. The metro's first line was served by carriages of D-type since its opening. In 1969, all these carriages were given to

Saint Petersburg Metro The Saint Petersburg Metro (russian: links=no, Петербургский метрополитен, Peterburgskiy metropoliten) is a rapid transit system in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Construction began in early 1941, but was put on hold due to Wor ...

. In exchange, the line received carriages of series E-type, and later carriages of series Em-501, Ema-502, and Ezh (Ezh1). In 2014, most carriages of types E and Ezh were modernized with new engines, interiors, and exteriors, converting them into a type similar to type 81-7021–7022; these are known as type 81-7080–7081 or E-KM. All of the trains contain an audio system, which announces the stations and transfer opportunities to other Metro lines. At Arsenalna station, there is an announcement for museums in the area. In addition, most of the older trains are fitted with an overhead video information system, which provides visual information to passengers regarding the current and the next stations and transfer opportunities between lines. While the train is in transit between stations, the system displays advertising (both in video and ticker forms), recreational video content, and local time. Kyiv Metro also has some special service trains, namely: * 2 trains checking the electrical system of the Kyiv Metro, which were conventional D-type and E-type trains before conversion * A D-type car that measures tracks' length * Laboratory car based on an Ezh-type train * An E-type freight car * A track repair vehicle In December 2016, the

announced that intended to buy 709 new trains by 2025 for ₴14.96 billion (USD$572.6 million at the time). Of these, 276 would replace older trains whose operation terms have expired, 62 would be added to the Syretsko-Pecherska line to ensure regular scheduling, and 371 would be introduced across newer sections of the metro system.

Travelling

Management

The Kyiv Metro is managed by the city-owned municipal company ''Kyivsky Metropoliten'' (formally formerly known as ''Kyivsky ordena Trudovoho chernovoho prapora Metropoliten imeni V.I. Lenina'') which was transferred in the early 1990s from the

Ministry of Transportation A ministry of transport or transportation is a ministry responsible for transportation within a country. It usually is administered by the ''minister for transport''. The term is also sometimes applied to the departments or other government ag ...

. The Metro employs several thousand workers in tunnel, track, station, and rolling stock management. In addition to being state-sponsored for operation, income comes from ticket sales and advertisements in stations (controlled by a daughter company ''Metroreklama''). Metro lines are being constructed by ''Kyivmetrobud''

public company A public company is a company whose ownership is organized via shares of stock which are intended to be freely traded on a stock exchange or in over-the-counter markets. A public (publicly traded) company can be listed on a stock exchange (l ...

which allocates segments of construction to individual brigades that are responsible for tunnel and station construction. Kyivmetrobud is directly funded by the profits of the Kyiv Metro and from the city and state budgets. Most of the state funding comes from Kyiv's municipality, while additional subventions are directly received from the state budget since the fares do not correspond to the optimal price which will give the possibility for the Kyiv underground to develop itself. In 2016, the Kyiv Metro received ₴76.1 million in net income (about USD$2.85 million), compared with its ₴119 million loss a year earlier. The current director is Viktor Brahinsky.

Ticketing

A single ride costs ₴8.00 ($0.29) regardless of destination and number of transits within the metro. The ride is paid for by paper QR tickets or contactless cards.

Tokens

For many decades, plastic tokens were used for

s; one token per person could be bought from station cashiers or automatic exchange machines. In recent decades, green tokens were used in 2000-2010 and 2015-2018; blue tokens were used in 2010-2015 and since 2018. Initially, the green (old) tokens were to be substituted by

QR-code A QR code (an initialism for quick response code) is a type of matrix barcode (or two-dimensional barcode) invented in 1994 by the Japanese company Denso Wave. A barcode is a machine-readable optical label that can contain information about th ...

tickets (introduced in August 2017) and RFID cards. The use of these tokens was gradually phased out. On 15 July 2019,

and Ipodrom stations became the first to stop selling and accepting tokens. Tokens were scheduled to be sold until 30 October 2019 and accepted until 3 November 2019; however, tokens were still being sold and used on 15 November 2019. In April 2020, tokens finally went out of circulation.

Contactless cards

Contactless ( RFID-based,

MIFARE MIFARE is the NXP Semiconductors-owned trademark of a series of integrated circuit (IC) chips used in contactless smart cards and proximity cards. The brand name covers proprietary solutions based upon various levels of the ISO/IEC 14443 Type ...

Classic and

Ultralight Ultralight aviation (called microlight aviation in some countries) is the flying of lightweight, 1- or 2-seat fixed-wing aircraft. Some countries differentiate between weight-shift control and conventional three-axis control aircraft with aile ...

) cards are used to enter the metro. A card can be purchased for a small fee (₴15 ($0.54); refundable should one want to return the card) from cashiers and loaded for up to 50 trips at once (so that not to exceed the 100-ride limit). There is a special gradual scale of prices, such that every tenth purchased access (bought once) makes every previous one cheaper by ₴0.30. To clarify, the first 9 ride accesses cost the standard amount, whereas for 10-19 rides, the price for each one is ₴7.70; for 20-29 rides, ₴7.40; and so on. Thus, loading the card with 50 rides costs only ₴6.50 ($0.23) per ride. The passenger can also pay for the fare using a bank card. MasterCard PayPass and Visa PayWave cards are accepted. Google Pay and

Apple Pay Apple Pay is a mobile payment service by Apple Inc. that allows users to make payments in person, in iOS apps, and on the web. It is supported on these Apple devices: iPhone, Apple Watch, iPad, and Mac. It digitizes and can replace a cred ...

can also be used. The cards can be recharged either by a cashier or by using a terminal. The terminals accept hryvnia paper bills in denominations of 1 to 50 UAH, but do not return change; instead, they refill the card for the maximum possible number of rides given the sum of money deposited into the machine, and store the remainder in the system, to be used at next refill. Monthly or 2 week passes with unlimited rides (₴380 ($13.46) per month) or a limited number of rides (62 or 46 rides per month, or half of it for 15 days, with the fare of ₴3.87 and ₴4.13 per ride, respectively) can also be purchased. A seven-minute second-use lockout is imposed for all unlimited cards to prevent abuse. Quarterly and yearly tickets were used until December 2009, when they stopped being released because they generated an estimated ₴115.6 million (about $14.5 million) of losses annually. From the late 1990s until the early 2000s, monthly unlimited metro passes with a magnetic strip were used. Due to reliability and counterfeiting issues, these were phased out in favor of RFID cards.

Historical fares

Originally the Metro ride cost was 50

kopeck The kopek or kopeck ( rus, копейка, p=kɐˈpʲejkə, ukr, копійка, translit=kopiika, p=koˈpʲijkə, be, капейка) is or was a coin or a currency unit of a number of countries in Eastern Europe closely associated with t ...

s; however, in 1961, following a revaluation of the Soviet ruble, the ride was fixed at 5 kopecks for the next 30 years. After 1991, as Ukraine suffered from hyperinflation, the price gradually rose to 20,000 karbovanets in 1996. Following the 1996 denomination, 20,000 karbovanets became ₴0.20 (20 kopiyok), although the karbovanets sum was still payable up to 16 September that year. Since then, the price has risen to ₴0.50 in 2000 and ₴2.00 in 2008. In November 2008, when the price was increased to ₴2.00, public protests took place and the Antitrust Committee of Ukraine ordered to decrease of the price to ₴1.70. In September 2010, the price was increased back to ₴2.00. In February 2015, the price was further increased. The last increase occurred on 15 July, 2017. The fares are set by the

Kyiv City State Administration Kyiv City State Administration ( uk, Київська міська державна адміністрація, translit=Kyivska miska derzhavna administratsiia), is the national-level branch of the Government of Ukraine that administers Kyiv, t ...

subject to the approval of the Ministry of Infrastructure. A proposal to set prices according to the distance traveled, or time spent in the metro, is being discussed. For this purpose, specially built "long" exit turnstiles with card readers at the far end have already been installed at some station exits.

Planned improvements and expansion

In 2012, plans for the Kyiv Metro aimed to nearly double its length by 2025. Whilst completion of this plan is not considered to be feasible, several new stations have opened since the turn of the millennium.

Construction of additional lines

Line 4 ( Podilsko-Vyhurivska)

The fourth line of the Kyiv Metro (also known as the Podilsko-Voskresenska line) will connect the northern

Troieschyna Troieshchyna (, uk, Троєщина, lit=Trinity, translit=Troyeshchyna) also known as Vyhurivschyna-Troieshchyna since 1997 (, uk, Вигурівщина-Троєщина) is a large neighborhood of Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, the biggest ...

districts in the east with the future business center of Rybalskiy Island on the Dnieper river, and from there arc around the

neighborhood. The line will continue westwards along the northern slope of the Starokyivska Hora and into the northwestern part of central Kyiv, where it will turn south and reach the

Kyiv Passenger Railway Station Kyiv-Pasazhyrskyi (''Kyiv-Passenger'', uk, Київ-Пасажирський) is a railway station in the capital of Ukraine, Kyiv. The station is a railway hub consisting of several railroad station buildings, along with its own repair facilit ...

. In doing so, it will offer transfers to all three other Metro lines and thus relieve the over-congested transfer points in the center. The last planned stage will connect the line to Kyiv's

Zhuliany airport Ihor Sikorsky Kyiv International Airport (Zhuliany) ( uk, Міжнародний аеропорт «Київ» імені Ігоря Сікорського (Жуляни)) is one of the two passenger airports of the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, the ...

and the residential districts along the way. This line first appeared in plans in 1980, when a new plan for Kyiv Metro development appeared. The section between Voskresenka (2 km south of Troieshchyna) and Vokzalna (through Chervona Ploshcha (now Kontraktova Ploshcha station), instead of today's plan to direct it via Tarasa Shevchenka), was planned to be open by 2000. Due to protests over the passage of the line through the historical neighborhood of

, the line was rerouted. Construction started in 1993, from the

Podilsko-Voskresensky bridge The Podilskyi Bridge ( uk, Подільський мостовий перехід), also known as Podilsko-Voskresenskyi Bridge ( uk, Подільсько-Воскресенський міст), is a combined road-rail bridge over the Dnipro River ...

. It was later stopped due to financial difficulties. This remains the only built section of the line. A second attempt was made in 2004, and it was expected that the bridge would be opened three years later, but work was again halted because the bridge had to pass through Rusanivski Sady, where the houses were to be demolished without compensation, which resulted in protest from residents. Other factors that contributed to the suspension of the project included problems with construction and the

financial crisis of 2007–2008 Finance is the study and discipline of money, currency and capital assets. It is related to, but not synonymous with economics, the study of production, distribution, and consumption of money, assets, goods and services (the discipline of fi ...

. Work on the bridge was only restarted in mid-2017, and it was forecasted to be opened by the end of 2021. The feasibility of the line has been subject to discussion, and alternative projects have been proposed, such as the construction of a light rail or light metro instead. Nevertheless, as of 6 July 2017, the subway option is still preferred, despite the route being altered from plan to plan. In May 2017, the Kyiv City Council signed a memorandum with a Chinese consortium (which includes the China Railway International Group and the China Pacific Construction Group) to assess the current advancement of the project and, eventually, to finally construct the line. The first segments of the line (colloquially called "metro to Troieshchyna") are planned to be finished by 2025, while further construction will most probably end after 2030.

Line 5 (Livoberezhna line (Kyiv Metro), Livoberezhna)

This line first appeared as a planned line on maps in 1974. The northern end of the fifth line of the system exists already as part of the Kyiv tram. However, it will require conversion and, according to some projects, will be temporarily operated as a branch of the Podilsko-Vyhurivska line (4th line). Eventually, a southward extension will commence that will follow along the eastern bank of the Dnieper to the Southern Osokorky district. This is the last Metro project that is envisioned in the present expansion plan and is not expected to be completed until the end of the 2030s. In 2009, it was planned that the first stage of this line will be launched in 2019. As of 6 July 2021, however, no section of the line has been opened.

Line 6 (Vyshhorodsko-Darnytska Line, Vyshhorodsko-Darnytska)

This is a proposed line in the Kyiv underground. Currently, it is under planning. The line is expected to be built in the distant future—as of 2012, any construction was predicted to start only after 2025. However, shortly after the announcement of such a proposal, the project has been resigned from.

Extensions

Line 1 extensions

One potential long-term extension of the M1 line is to the town of

, to the east of Kyiv. A much more feasible short-term extension is to "Novobilychi" station (Kyiv Metro), Novobilychi station, with a "Novobilychi" depot, depot. In 2011, Volodymyr Fedorenko, then-head of the Kyiv Metro communal enterprise, said this extension might be constructed by 2020. However, this construction has not happened, as the Line 4 construction is currently the absolute priority; moreover, Novobilychi station's location will not bring the line to any significant residential area (Bilychi, the nearest area, is already west of Akademmistechko station). As of 5 May 2021, no tenders have taken place.

Line 2 (southern extension)

A planned extension of the M2 line will feature a side branch: the side branch will go to the "Teremky" bus station, Teremky bus station, which opened in December 2016, and will serve the Teremky-2 and Teremky-3 residential areas, while the main line is expected to go further southwest to Odeska station. For the moment, this extension is not a priority.

Line 3 (eastward extension)

Several extension proposals for the M3 line have been made. In the 2005 general plan, the line was supposed to turn sharply from Chevony Khutir to

, with a subsequent extension to Livoberezhna. Presumably, the proposal was declined, as later plans do not include any lines' prolongation beyond Chervony Khutir. In April 2017, Kyiv's Mayor Vitali Klitschko, Vitaliy Klychko and Ukraine's Minister of Infrastructure, Volodymyr Omelyan, announced they "were talking about the project of subway extension from Boryspilska metro station to Boryspil International Airport, Boryspil airport with the help of private financing", although the project's approximately extension is unlikely to happen soon.

Line 3 (northward extension)

The northward extension to Vynohradar has been a long-planned event, with the first maps appearing in the newspaper ''Vechirniy Kyiv'' in August 1970. In February 2017, an article suggested that the plans were already given for analysis and that construction had to start by late 2017. The article mentions that the project will feature an engineering feat not made before in Kyiv: instead of parallel tunnels, one tunnel will be on top of another. On 6 July 2017, the China Machinery Engineering Corporation, Chinese Machinery Engineering Corporation said it was ready to invest and build the line to Vynohradar. In February 2017, the line's extension and two stations—Mostytska and Prospekt Pravdy (earlier known as Vynohradar)—were scheduled for opening in late 2019. In November 2018, Kyiv Metro signed a contract for the construction of the Mostytska and Prospekt Pravdy subway stations and a branch line toward the Vynohradar station; the deadline for completion was set for 2021.The Kyiv metro assures that the branch to Vynohradar will be opened by the end of the year
, Ukrayinska Pravda, Ekonomichna Pravda (8 July 2021) In the contract, it was agreed that the Chamber of Commerce would judge on possible justifiable force majeure that would slow down the work. In early September 2021, the Chamber of Commerce judged there was such, and the expiration of the contract with the Kyiv Metro was to be postponed from November 2021 to May 2023.Metro to Vynohradar does not have time to be built before 2023
, Ukrayinska Pravda, Ekonomichna Pravda (6 September 2021) Further plans feature another extension to Marshala Hrechka station (earlier known as Synioozerna) with "Vynohradar" depot, Vynohradar depot built as well.

Language issues

Russian versus Ukrainian

When the Metro was opened in 1960, although many workers and all technical-level documents used Russian, all the signs and announcements used Ukrainian exclusively. One local story suggests that Yivga Kuznetsova, then a student of Kyiv university, forced the local city council to make all the announcements in Ukrainian only. The lexical similarity of the languages allowed every station to have a Russian translation, and these were often given in Russian language literature and media. However, some Ukrainian names for stations were different from Russian ones, and to signify this, those stations were sometimes semi-translated into Russian, effectively blending Ukrainian words into Russian grammar. Examples of this include the station names ''Ploshcha'' Z''hovtnevoi Revolutsii'', ''Zhovtneva'', and ''Chervonoarmiyska'' (later renamed to Maidan Nezalezhnosti, Beresteiska, and Palats Ukraina, respectively) which when translated into Russian would become ''Oktyabrskaya'' and ''Krasnoarmeiskaya.'' The names were instead given as ''Zhovtnevaya'' and ''Chervonoarmeiskaya.'' (If the semi-translation continued today, Chervony Khutir, which, when translated into Russian would become ''Krasnyi Khutor'', would be instead given as ''Chervonyi Khutor''). In the early to mid-1980s, due in part to both Shcherbytsky's gradual Russification campaign and Kyiv becoming increasingly Russophone, Russophonic, the metro started to change as well. Although the stations retained their original Ukrainian titles on the vestibules, Russian appeared together with Ukrainian on the walls and replaced Ukrainian in signs and voice announcements. Stations that were opened during this period still had Ukrainian names appearing along with Russian ones on the walls, but now all the decorations where slogans were included, became bilingual. Also during this time, the unique practice of blending Ukrainian into Russian was dropped, and those selected stations were named in standard Russian translation. During Perestroika in the late 1980s, bilingualism was gradually introduced in signs and voice announcements on trains. Before 1991, this was done with Ukrainian following Russian, but after the republic proclaimed independence in August 1991, the order was changed to Ukrainian preceding Russian. After the fall of the Soviet Union in late 1991, both signs and voice announcements were changed from bilingual to just Ukrainian due to the Ukrainianization policy. However, the Russian names are still used in Russian-language literature and some documentation, and some of the decorations still feature bilingual inscriptions.

Use of Latin script

The usage of English in stations started before the UEFA Euro 2012, Euro-2012 football tournament, and all of Kyiv's underground stations now feature Latin script, Latin transliteration on signs and official maps.

Renaming of stations

Some of Kyiv's underground stations have been renamed before and (to a greater extent) after they were completed. The only station to be renamed during the Soviet period occurred in 1977 when the name of "Ploshcha Mikhail Kalinin, Kalinina" was changed to "Ploshcha Zhovtnevoi Revolutsii" for the upcoming 60th anniversary of the

. During the 1990s, more changes occurred, mostly relating to stations with names connected to Communism. On 15 October 1990, "Chervona Ploshcha" became "Kontraktova Ploshcha", and "Prospekt Oleksandr Korniychuk, Korniychuka" became "Obolon". A half-built station, due to be called "Fyodor Sergeyev, Artema", was renamed "Lukyanivska". On 26 August 1991, following Ukraine's declaration of independence, "Ploshcha Zhovtnevoi Revolutsii" became known as "Maidan Nezalezhnosti". In 1993, nine stations, most of which bore communist symbolism in their name, were given politically neutral names: In 2011, "Respublikansky Stadion" became "Olimpiiska", in honour of the forthcoming UEFA Euro 2012, Euro-2012 football tournament. In 2018, "Petrivka" (named after the Soviet politician Grigory Petrovsky) was re-designated as "Pochaina" after the river that once flowed nearby, to comply with 2015 Decommunization in Ukraine, decommunization laws. In 2022, as part of Derussification in Ukraine, derussification efforts following 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Russia's invasion of Ukraine, five stations were renamed: Beresteiska ("Brest, Belarus, Brest") to Buchanska ("Bucha, Kyiv Oblast, Bucha"), Minska ("Minsk") to Varshavskа ("Warsaw"), Heroiv Dnipra ("Battle of the Dnieper, Heroes of the Dnipro") to Heroiv Ukrainy ("Heroes of Ukraine"), Ploshcha Lva Tolstoho ("Leo Tolstoy Square") to Vasylіа Stusа ("Vasyl Stus"), and Druzhby Narodiv ("Friendship of Nations") to Botanichna ("Botanical"). The new names were all selected by voters.

Notes

References

External links

Kyivskyi Metropoliten
— Official website
Kyiv
{{Underground rapid transit in the European Union and the United Kingdom Kyiv Metro, Rail transport in Kyiv, Metro Underground rapid transit in Ukraine Railway lines opened in 1960 1960 establishments in Ukraine

Beginnings (1884-1920)

Initial promotion

Construction

First phase

Opening and aftermath

Extension of the first line

Second line

Infrastructure development

Third line

Soviet period

Post-independence

The final phase (1991–2013)

Modernization

Rolling stock

Stations

Wartime use

Line 1 ( Sviatoshynsko-Brovarska)

Line 2 ( Obolonsko–Teremkivska)

Line 3 ( Syretsko-Pecherska)

Stations

Technical data

Architecture

Passenger flow

Transfer hubs to other lines and other means of rapid transit

Distribution of stations across the city

Rolling stock

Travelling

Management

Ticketing

Tokens

Contactless cards

Historical fares

Planned improvements and expansion

Construction of additional lines

Line 4 ( Podilsko-Vyhurivska)

Line 5 (Livoberezhna line (Kyiv Metro), Livoberezhna)

Line 6 (Vyshhorodsko-Darnytska Line, Vyshhorodsko-Darnytska)

Extensions

Line 1 extensions

Line 2 (southern extension)

Line 3 (eastward extension)

Line 3 (northward extension)

Language issues

Russian versus Ukrainian

Use of Latin script

Renaming of stations

See also

Notes

References

External links