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The Moscow Metro

The Moscow Metro

If you look at a map of Moscow, you will see that the city consists of a series of distinct circles with the Kremlin and Red Square at its center. The most famous and important sites within the first circle can be easily covered on foot. Beyond that, the sights are more spread out and are best reached by Moscow metro.

 

The Moscow Metro ranks among the world's finest public transportation systems. Opened in 1935, the system's earliest stations -- in the city center and along the ring line -- were built as public palaces and are decorated with chandeliers, sculptures, stained-glass windows, and beautiful mosaics.

 

With more than 200 km (124 mi) of track, the Moscow metro carries an estimated 8 million passengers daily. Even in today's hard economic times, the system continues to run efficiently, with trains every 50 seconds during rush hour. It leaves New Yorkers green with envy.

 

There are more than 150 metro stations - many of them elegant, marble-faced, frescoed, gilded works of art. The magnetic card system is easy to use and transferrable between buses and trams, with plenty of signage and maps to help. You'll rarely wait more than two minutes for a train, nine million people a day use the system. The oldest stations were originally intended to double as bomb shelters, which is why the escalators seem to plunge halfway to the centre of the earth.

 

Moscow Metro Tips

•  If you're not traveling with a tour group taking the Moscow metro is the best way to travel from you hotel to the city's sights. You'll be doing yourself a great favor if you learn the Russian alphabet well enough to be able to transliterate the names of the stations. Most Moscow Metro maps , though, also have English transbribtions of the station names. However, this will come in especially handy at the transfer points, where signs with long lists of the names of metro stations lead you from one of the major metro lines to another. You should also be able to recognize the entrance and exit signs because going the wrong way could earn you a scolding from one of the many red-hatted women working at the stations.

•  Pocket maps of the system are available at newspaper kiosks or sometimes from individual vendors at metro stations. Plan your route beforehand and have your destination written down in Russian and its English transliteration to help you spot the station. Each station is announced over the train's public address system as you approach it, and the name of the next one is given before the train moves off. Reminders of interchanges and transfers are also given. Some new trains with electronic map displays, very helpful for non-Russian speakers, have been introduced but are not widespread enough to rely on.

•  The metro is easy to use and amazingly inexpensive. Stations are marked with a large illuminated "M" sign and are open daily 5:30 AM-1 AM. Most hotels are situated near a metro station. The fare is the same regardless of distance traveled, and there are all transfers to other lines are free. You purchase a magnetic card for 1, 5, 10, 20, or more journeys (available at all stations) and insert it into the slot at the turnstile upon entering. The card will then appear again on the turnstile. Don't forget to take it. Stations are built deep underground; the escalators are steep and run fast, so watch your step. If you use the metro during rush hour ( 4-6 PM ), be prepared for a lot of pushing and shoving. In a crowded train, just before a station, you are likely to be asked, "vy khodíte?," or whether you are getting off at the next station. If not, you are expected to move out of the way. Riders are expected to give up seats for older people and small children.

•  If you want to avoid the lines for metro cards, you can purchase a pass ( yediny bilyet ) that is valid for all modes of public transportation, and is sold by the calendar month. The passes are on sale at the same windows as Moscow metro cards. They are inexpensive and well worth the added expense for the convenience. These passes work just like the normal magnetic cards.

 

When to Avoid Using the Moscow Metro

It's not a great idea to use the Moscow metro during rush hour, especially in the morning when everyone is hurrying to work. Morning rush hour is from 7-9, and evening rush hour is from 5-7. If you must use the Moscow metro at those times, be prepared for large crowds and chaotic prossesions of people transferring stations. The trains get packed very tightly at these times of the day. Don't be surprised that you're standing with your face imprinted into someones back, or that there's someone tall breathing in your ear. The notion of personal space in Russia is differs from that in the U.S.

If there are too many people, skip a train and wait for the next one. Another good idea is to go to the very front of the train, its more likely that there will be less people in that part, if the entrance onto the platform is near the rear of the train.

To make your travel on the Moscow metro a pleasant one, try to avoid the crowds, so you can take in the decoration and artwork of each individual station. No two stations are the same in the Moscow metro.