Number of stations 59 | Transit type Rapid transit | |
Number of lines 2 (in operation), 5 (by 2020) Daily ridership 373,000 (2015 Avg.)638,800 (2014 Peak) Website http://www.sz-mtr.com/ (Chinese) | ||
The Suzhou Rail Transit also known as Suzhou Metro is a metro system serving the city of Suzhou, in Jiangsu province, China. Line 1 began operation on April 28, 2012. Line 2 opened on December 28, 2013. Another five lines are also planned to be completed before 2020. Upon completion, the system will be about 140 kilometers long and have 109 stations. Further plans to extend Line 3 to neighbouring Kunshan city and to connect system with the Shanghai Metro are under active review.
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Line 1
Line 1 opened on April 28, 2012. It is a line running generally east-west, from Mudu Station in western Suzhou to Zhongnan Jie Station in Suzhou Industrial Park. It is 25 km long with 24 stations.
Construction on Line 1 began on December 26, 2007 and was completed by 2012. On December 30th, 2011 the first 21 cars for Line 1 have been delivered.
Line 2
Line 2 opened on December 28, 2013. It is a line running generally north-south, from Suzhou North Railway Station in north Xiangcheng District to Baodaiqiao South Station close to Precious Belt Bridge located in Wuzhong District.
Construction on Line 2 began on December 25, 2009 and was completed by early 2013. On December 28th, 2013, line 2 started service and became a part of Suzhou Rail Transit system. The new 13 stations were opened on September 24, 2016.
Line 3
Line 3 is planned to run from Suzhou New District Railway Station in the northwest, via Wuzhong District in south Suzhou to Weiting in the east, with a total of 31 stations. At the planned interchange stations with Line 1 and Line 2 platforms for Line 3 are already prepared.
Line 4
Line 4 will start in the north of Suzhou, west of Line 2. Its main line will lead from Suli Road to Pangjin Road in the south/south east of Suzhou. After reaching Suzhou railway station, it will almost exactly follow Renmin road and Dongwubei road reaching further south until after a smooth arc to the west it turns sharp east leading towards its planned terminus Pangjin Road in Wujiang District. In this setup, Line 4 will have 30 stations. Construction is in progress, while opening is scheduled for late 2016. At the planned interchange stations with Line 1 and Line 2 platforms for Line 4 are already prepared. The Southwest Branch of Line 4 is the first phase of the future Line 7. This branch is supposed to follow the same path as the main line until Hongzhuang, then turning into south western direction leading to Youxiang Road.
Line 4
Plans for line 4 have been revised. Initially planned for a later date, construction of line 4 has been started with the main line now leading from Suli Road in the north to Pangjin Road at Wujiang district (former Wujiang City). The originally planned section leading to the south-west appears in actual maps as "under planning" in shape of a branch line of line 4.
Other Lines
Besides others, short video spots shown on screens in Suzhou's subway trains where Suzhou Rail Transit company introduces itself and its plans. These plans contain a line 5 and 6
Rolling Stock
All rolling stocks of Suzhou Rail Transit use Nanjing Puzhen Rolling Stock Works trains.
Fares and tickets
The base fare of Suzhou Rail Transit is 2 yuan (US$0.33) for journeys under 6 km, then 1 yuan for each 5 km between 6–16 km, 1 yuan for each 7 km between 16–30 km, 1 yuan for 9 km more than 30 km. As September 24, 2016, the highest fare is 8 yuan (US$1.33).
Users of the Suzhou Tong get a 5% discount for every journey.