Omsk Metro

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Omsk Metro (Russian: Омский метрополитен, Omsky metropoliten) is currently under construction in Omsk, Russia. After long delays, the first section is scheduled to open in the fourth quarter of 2008 (this date was announced in April 2005).

[edit] History

Central planners in Moscow first identified Omsk as a metro-eligible city during the 1960s, due to its length along the Irtysh River and its relatively narrow streets. But after the plan was approved and financed, the planners decided to build an express tram instead, and the money allocated to Omsk was given to Chelyabinsk. In 1979, a Gosplan commission rejected a plan to build an express tram system since it was predicted to be unable to handle projected passenger flows without severely discomforting riders. In 1986, metro plans were revisited and financing began, along with the demolition of residential buildings to make way for tracks and a yard.

Construction began in 1992 between the stations Tupolevskaya (Russian: Туполевская) and Rabochaya (Russian: Рабочая ~ Workers' Station). The initial plans involved opening the section between the stations Marshala Zhukova and Rabochaya on the right bank of the Irtysh River to connect downtown to the manufacturing district, and then later to connect the line to the opposite bank of the Irtysh. Due to poor financial circumstances, by 2003 just the section between Marshala Zhukova and Rabochaya was completed (with no intermediate stations). At this time the plans changed and the authorities decided to connect the two banks of the Irtsh with a metro bridge, going between one station on the right bank and three on the left bank. The combined metro (lower level) and motor-vehicle (upper level) bridge was built and opened to vehicular traffic in 2005.

The current phase of construction involves four stations:

• Biblioteka im. Pushkina (Russian: Библиотека имени Пушкина ~ Pushkin Library)
• Zarechnaya (Russian: Заречная ~ Over the River)
• Kristall (Russian: Кристалл)
• Sobornaya (Russian: Соборная ~ Cathedral Station)

This section is 6.1 km in length. The average speed is expected to be 36 km/h and travel time along the entire route is expected to be 10 minutes 12 seconds. Daily ridership is projected at 190,000 passengers and yearly ridership at 69 million.

[edit] Stations

All of the stations will be shallow.

Biblioteka im. Pushkina was planned as Krasnyi Put' (Russian: Красный Путь ~ Red Way). Kristall was planned as Bul'var Arkhitektorov (Russian: Бульвар Архитекторов ~ Boulevard of the Architects). Sobornaya was planned as Avtovokzal (Russian: Автовокзал ~ Bus Terminal).

[edit] Future development

Plans call for the line to be extended on the right bank of the Irtysh to Rabochaya station (the section between Tupolevskaya and Rabochaya is partially complete). The first line is planned to have 11 stations and a total length of 13.6 km, with an additional metro bridge over the Om River, by 2015 or 2016 (the latter date is the 300th anniversary of Omsk). When the line is complete, it is expected to have a daily ridership of 330,000 passengers.

Construction of the second line will start after 2015. It will go on the right bank of the Irtysh, mostly parallel to the river. Transfer to the first line will be available at Biblioteka im. Pushkina. This line is expected to have 20 stations. At the same time, the first line is planned to be extended on the left bank by four stations.

The third line will not be built until the distant future. If built, it will likely be on both banks of the Irtysh, like the first line.

Rapid transit in the former USSR
Metro systems: Moscow • Saint Petersburg • Kiev • Tbilisi • Baku • Kharkiv • Tashkent • Yerevan • Minsk • Nizhny Novgorod • Novosibirsk • Samara • Yekaterinburg • Dnipropetrovsk • Kazan Metrotrams: Volgograd • Kryvyi Rih Under construction: Almaty • Omsk • Chelyabinsk • Krasnoyarsk • Donetsk