Hungary in English: Means of Transport in Hungary II.

Sunday, January 28, 2007

Means of Transport in Hungary II. - Budapest Metro

The Budapest Metro consists of three lines. Line 4 is under construction. There are also plans for Budapest Metro Line 5.

The line 1 of Budapest Metro is the oldest subway of the continental Europe. It was inagurated in 1896, the year of millennium.

Line 2 was built from 1950 to 1963 and is currently under major reconstructions. Among others, stations are renovated. The renovation will have been finished this year.

The construction of Budapest Metro line 3 was started in 1970 but reached its current length only in 1990. It is the longest metro line in Budapest. It is 17 km-long and consist of 20 stations.

Budapest metro can't be compared to the beauty of Moscow Metro, for example. However, Metro line 1 and 2 are beautifully renovated. The third line of Budapest metro still gives a very strong retro-Communist atmosphere.

Finally, some interesting facts about Budapest Metro from Wikipedia:

- Mobile phones can be used throughout the existing metro lines, although travellers are asked to switch them off (of course, on one switch them off at all).

- There are still the same Soviet vehicles running on Metro line two and three (like in Moscow and some subway services of Prague, as well as the only line in Warsaw). The trains are driven by two people, except for Metro 3, which has a "program carpet" controlling the trains' speed and stopping. This means that controlling the metro mostly consists of opening and closing the door. On the other hand, Metro 4 will be entirely automatic, functioning without human drivers.

- In case of an attack or a catastrophe, the Budapest Metro can provide shelter for 220,000 people, including fresh air (with an air-filter), drinking-water (3 l) and washing-water (27 l per person per day).

- A film with a huge success titled Kontroll was made in Budapest Metro in 2003. It was also screened in Cannes and in the U.S.