Locale Harbin Number of lines 2 Website www.harbin-metro.com | Transit type rapid transit Number of stations 21 | |
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Owner Harbin Municipal People's Government | ||
Harbin Metro is the metro system of Harbin, the provincial capital of Heilongjiang Province in northeastern China. The system began operation on 26 September 2013 with the opening of Line 1, which is 17.47 km (11 mi) in length and has 17 stations in service. The system is undergoing expansion and is expected to have a total of three lines and 89.58 km (56 mi) of track in service by 2018.
Contents
Hours and fares
In the winter time, the metro begins operation at 6:00 am and the last train departs at 9:00 pm. Fares range from ¥2 to ¥4 depending on trip distance. Single-ride and rechargeable fare cards may be purchased at ticket windows or automatic fare card machines in each station.
Line 1
The Line 1 is oriented along the east–west axis of the urban area of Harbin: from north-east (Harbin East Railway Station) to south-west (2nd Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University). The Museum Station on Line 1 was not in operation as of 26 September 2013.
Line 3
The Line 3 is a circular line around the urban area of Harbin: The first phase consist of 5 stations. However, Chengxianglu will not be in operation.
History
The Harbin Metro was approved by the State Council in 2005. The initial investment was estimated to cost USD 643 million. The project was headed by the Harbin Municipal People's Government Metro Construction, which established a Track Traffic Construction Office led by the city's construction commission. In 2006, an official "Initiation Ceremony of Harbin Metro Trial Project" was held, signifying the actual implementation of Harbin Line 1 project. The builders made use of a 10.1 km air defense tunnel built in the 1970s as part of the “7381” civil air-defense, which forms part of Line 1.
Construction on Line 1 began a second time on 29 September 2009 and was later halted and began a third time in March 2010. In March 2011 the contract for traincars for first line was signed with Changchun Railway Vehicles co. ltd. Target date for opening of first line of 17.47 km length with 18 stations was set to the end of 2012. The line actually opened on 26 September 2013.
Future lines
After Line 1 (Red), two more lines will open: Line 2 (Violet) from east to northwest with 17 stations and Circle Line 3 (Orange) with 32 stations. By 2020, as many as five lines with total length of 143 km could be completed.