Hangzhou Metro is a metro

Rapid transit

A rapid transit, underground, subway, elevated railway, metro or metropolitan railway system is an electric passenger railway in an urban area with a high capacity and frequency, and grade separation from other traffic. Rapid transit systems are typically located either in underground tunnels or on...

 system currently under construction to serve the city of Hangzhou

Hangzhou

Hangzhou , formerly transliterated as Hangchow, is the capital and largest city of Zhejiang Province in Eastern China. Governed as a sub-provincial city, and as of 2010, its entire administrative division or prefecture had a registered population of 8.7 million people...

, Zhejiang

Zhejiang

Zhejiang is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. The word Zhejiang was the old name of the Qiantang River, which passes through Hangzhou, the provincial capital...

 and its suburbs. The construction commenced in March 2006, and is expected to complete by October 1, 2012.

When Phase I is opened for service, Hangzhou will become the 14th city in the People's Republic of China to have a rapid transit system. The first line, Line 1 is 48 kilometers in length, with 30 stations. Line 1 has a projected cost of 22.08 billion yuan

Chinese yuan

The yuan is the base unit of a number of modern Chinese currencies. The yuan is the primary unit of account of the Renminbi.A yuán is also known colloquially as a kuài . One yuán is divided into 10 jiǎo or colloquially máo...

. Line 1 originates in Xiaoshan Xiang Lake, stretches across downtown Hangzhou after crossing the Qiantang River

Qiantang River

The Qiantang River is a southeast Chinese river that originates in the borders of Anhui and Jiangxi provinces and passes through Hangzhou, the capital of Zhejiang province, before flowing into the East China Sea through Hangzhou Bay....

 and it ends in Linping, with a branch line ending in Xiasha, which diverges from the main line at Jiubao. Line 1 connects downtown Hangzhou with suburban area of the city. A total of 8 lines with a length of 278 km are planned.

On January 2009, it was announced that MTR Corp would operate and invest in a 22 billion-yuan ($3.2 billion) / 25 year / 49% share joint venture with the Hangzhou government.

History

The planning for a metro system in the city started in the 1990s and was about to start construction works in September 2003, but the State Council

State Council of the People's Republic of China

The State Council of the People's Republic of China , which is largely synonymous with the Central People's Government after 1954, is the chief administrative authority of the People's Republic of China. It is chaired by the Premier and includes the heads of each governmental department and agency...

 suspended construction works due to increasing costs. The state council approved the planning of a rapid transit system on June 6, 2005. Hangzhou Subway Group Co. Ltd will build and operate the metro system in the eastern Chinese city. The preliminary design for Line 1 was approved on January 11, 2007 by the Development and Reform Commission after four days of work by the experts. The 47.97 km line will have 41.36 km of underground lines, 6.14 km elevated, and 0.47 km at ground level

Storey

A storey or story is any level part of a building that could be used by people...

.

Construction

Construction of the first phase of Hangzhou Metro Line 1 began on March 28, 2007 and subsequent phases started in June, August and October of the same year. The first phase includes six stations namely, Jiubao East, Binjiang, Wenzhe Road, and three underground stations in Qianjiang New City. Jiubao East Station is the biggest station along Line 1 and will be a hub for the future metro system and other forms of public transport

Public transport

Public transport is a shared passenger transportation service which is available for use by the general public, as distinct from modes such as taxicab, car pooling or hired buses which are not shared by strangers without private arrangement.Public transport modes include buses, trolleybuses, trams...

. The funding of Line 1 will come from both the city government and the banks who will give 10.2 billion yuan and 5 billion yuan respectively. The first phase construction is estimated to be 45 billion yuan.

Accident

On November 15, 2008, a 75-meter section of the tunnel near Fengqing Avenue in Xiaoshan District collapsed while under construction, killing 17 people.

External links

• Hangzhou Metro (official site)