The Xi'an Metro, also known as the Xi'an Rail Transit, is a

rapid transit Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT) or heavy rail, commonly referred to as metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport that is generally built in urban areas. A grade separation, grade separated rapid transit line below ground su ...

system in the city of

Xi'an Xi'an is the list of capitals in China, capital of the Chinese province of Shaanxi. A sub-provincial city on the Guanzhong plain, the city is the third-most populous city in Western China after Chongqing and Chengdu, as well as the most populou ...

and the neighbouring city of

Xianyang Xianyang ( zh, s=咸阳 , p=Xiányáng) is a prefecture-level city in central Shaanxi province, situated on the Wei River a few kilometers upstream (west) from the provincial capital of Xi'an. Once the capital of the Qin dynasty, it is now int ...

, in

Shaanxi Shaanxi is a Provinces of China, province in north Northwestern China. It borders the province-level divisions of Inner Mongolia to the north; Shanxi and Henan to the east; Hubei, Chongqing, and Sichuan to the south; and Gansu and Ningxia to t ...

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. The system has 11 lines in operation. Line 2 opened to the public on September 16, 2011. Line 1 began operation on September 15, 2013. Line 3 began operation after months of delay on November 8, 2016. Line 4 opened on December 26, 2018. Lines 5, 6, 9 opened in December 2020. Line 14 opened in September 2019 and extended in June 2021. Xihu Line opened in November 2022. Line 16 opened on June 27, 2023. Line 10 opened on September 28, 2024. Line 8 opened on December 26, 2024. Line 15 is expected to open in June 2025. Line 17 is expected to open no earlier than late 2027.

History

Initial proposals for a subway in Xi'an were created in the 70s which called for the Xi'an City Wall to be demolished to make way for a ring subway line. This was similar to what was done to create

Beijing Subway The Beijing Subway is the rapid transit system of Beijing Direct-controlled municipality, Municipality that consists of 29 lines including 24 rapid transit lines, two airport rail links, one maglev line and two light rail, light rail tram line ...

Line 2, but the plan was scrapped due to successful opposition by preservationists and lack of funding for the project. Later, Xi'an began its planning a multiline metro system in the mid-1980s. The plan was first submitted to the State Council in 1994, with four planned lines and a total length of . In February 2004, the re-drafted plan was submitted to the State Government, which received final approval on September 13, 2006. The first line, Line 2, began construction along Chang'an Street on 29 September 2006 and was completed in 2011. It runs north–south and passes under such historic sites as the

Bell Tower A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell to ...

and the Xi'an City Wall. It is long with lying underground, approximately below the surface. It is estimated to have cost 17.9 billion yuan (US$2.24 billion). The route stretches from the Beikezhan to Weiqunan with 20 stops. The travel time is 39 minutes for the entire length, cutting the commute almost in half. Operations began on 28 September 2011. Four other routes were planned to start construction in 2011 and to be finished by around 2020. Once completed, the system spanned and mainly serviced the urban and suburban districts of Xi'an and part of

. On June 12, 2019, the NDRC approved the Phase III (2018-2024) Construction Plan of Xi'an Metro. The plan included Line 1 (Phase 3), Line 2 (Phase 2), Line 8, Line 10 (Phase 1), Line 14, Line 15 (Phase 1) and Line 16 (Phase 1). The total length of Xi'an Metro was to be . , the network includes 11 metro lines and one commuter railway with a total length of and 270 stations.

Lines in operation

Line 1

The second route, Line 1, was scheduled to start in late 2009 but was brought one year earlier as per Chinese government's response to the

Great Recession The Great Recession was a period of market decline in economies around the world that occurred from late 2007 to mid-2009.

. Line 1 opened on 15 September 2013. The route runs from east to west. The line is with 23 stations. To accelerate the speed of overall economic development between Xi'an and

cities, the Transportation Department of Xi'an decided to extend Line 1 to promote business travel between the two cities, as well as improve the efficiency of land use alongside Line 1. The preparation phase for the extension Line 1 started with the compilation of a

feasibility study A feasibility study is an assessment of the practicality of a project or system. A feasibility study aims to objectively and rationally uncover the strengths and weaknesses of an existing business or proposed venture, opportunities and threats pr ...

on November 4, 2007.

Line 2

The first line that was opened, Line 2, opened on 16 September 2011. This line is long with 25 stations. The line runs from north to south. Line 2 links the new Xi'an North Railway Station to Weiqu. It was built 20 m below ground to protect the Xi'an City Wall, built by the

Ming Dynasty The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of ...

368-1644that was 14 km long. To protect ancient buildings from the impact of vibration, advanced technologies were used.

Line 3

Construction of Xi'an Metro's Line 3 broke ground in May 2011, began public trial testing on September 20, 2016, and was opened on November 8, 2016. The line is currently long with 26 stations. When Phase 2 (still under planning) opens, the line will be long and with 31 stations.

Line 4

Construction of test section of Line 4 of Xi'an Metro started in late 2012. Line 4 started service on December 26, 2018, it is currently .西安地铁四号线昨开始盾构从南到北共设29站
新浪陕西 On September 25, 2022, Xi'an railway station, an infill station, opened, bringing the amount of stations to 29.

Line 5

The first & second phase of line 5 opened on December 28, 2020, it stretches from Chuangxingang to Matengkong and is long. The line runs from east to west. The eastern section of the first phase atengkong to Yanminghuopened on September 26, 2024, bringing the line another , with future plans to extend 1 station east to the under construction Xi'an East Railway Station.

Line 6

Line 6 opened on December 28, 2020 from Northwestern Polytechnical University to Xi'an International Medical Center with . The second phase opened on December 29, 2022, when the line was extended from Northwestern Polytechnical University to Fangzhicheng, bringing , and was extended further southeast from Xi'an Int'll Medical Center to Xi'an South Railway Station, another under construction railway station.

Line 8

Line 8 opened on December 26, 2024, it is long and is a fully underground circular line with 37 stations.

Line 9

Line 9 opened on December 28, 2024, starting from Fangzhicheng, the eastern terminus of Line 1 & 6, to Qinlingxi, which is long.

Line 10

Line 10 opened on September 26, 2024, from Jingshangcun to Zhaohuiguangchang, it is long.

Line 14

It was formerly the Airport Intercity railway before it was now integrated as Line 14, when this happened, the operator transferred to Xi'an Metro from Shaanxi Railway. The 29.31 km western section from Airport West (T1, T2, T3) to opened on 29 September 2019. The eastern section from to Heshao opened on 29 June 2021.

Line 16

Line 16 opened on June 27, 2023, the first phase that stretched from Shijingli to Qinchuangyuanzhongxin is long.

Xihu Line

Xihu Line opened in November 2022, it is currently long that stretched from Epanggongnan to Huxian, with no intermediate stations, there are 3 infill stations planned in between them, which are Kunmingchi, Mawang, and Wuzhu.

Future development

The final sections of Lines 5 & 6 connect to two new railway stations and are to open at the same time as those stations. On June 12, 2019, the NDRC approved the Phase III (2018-2024) Construction Plan of Xi'an Metro. The plan includes Line 1 (Phase 3), Line 2 (Phase 2), Line 8, Line 10 (Phase 1), Line 14, Line 15 (Phase 1), Line 16 (Phase 1). The total length of Xi'an Metro will be in 2024.

Incidents

On 30 December 2008, a fire occurred that was extinguished within an hour; all workers evacuated safely. Just 66 hours later, on 2 January, another fire occurred at another station on Line 2. On 26 May 2009, an individual suffered minor injuries from a fire during infrastructure work on Line 1. On 2 August 2009, 9:20am, a cave-in at the construction site of Sajinqiao section of Line 1 trapped migrant workers under 10 cubic meters of earth for over three hours, hospitalizing at least two who later died at the hospital.

Network map

References

External links

Official website
{{Rapid transit in Asia Railway lines opened in 2011 2011 establishments in China Transport in Xi'an Underground rapid transit in China