Butovskaya Light Metro Line or BLLM is a Light Metro line of the
Moscow MetroThe Moscow Metro , which spans almost the entire Russian capital, is the world's second most heavily used rapid-transit system. Opened in 1935, it is well known for the ornate design of many of its stations, which contain outstanding examples of socialist realist art.-Description of the Metro:In...
. The line symbolises an experiment of building rapid-transit in areas where tunnel boring is thought to be expensive and impractical. In the past, attempts were made to build lines on ground level, however as the
Filyovskaya LineFilyovskaya Line , a line of the Moscow Metro. Chronologically the sixth to open, it connects the major eastern districts of Dorogomilovo and Fili along with the Moscow City with the city centre...
showed, the hard Russian climate, particularly in the winter and the large amount of space wasted proved the design unsuccessful.
Butovskaya Light Metro Line or BLLM is a Light Metro line of the
Moscow MetroThe Moscow Metro , which spans almost the entire Russian capital, is the world's second most heavily used rapid-transit system. Opened in 1935, it is well known for the ornate design of many of its stations, which contain outstanding examples of socialist realist art.-Description of the Metro:In...
. The line symbolises an experiment of building rapid-transit in areas where tunnel boring is thought to be expensive and impractical. In the past, attempts were made to build lines on ground level, however as the
Filyovskaya LineFilyovskaya Line , a line of the Moscow Metro. Chronologically the sixth to open, it connects the major eastern districts of Dorogomilovo and Fili along with the Moscow City with the city centre...
showed, the hard Russian climate, particularly in the winter and the large amount of space wasted proved the design unsuccessful. However, new districts on the very edge of the city, particularly those outside Moscow's outer ring road (
MKADMKAD is a ring road encircling the City of Moscow.The name is a transliteration of the Russian word МКАД, an acronym for Московская Кольцевая Автомобильная Дорога .The growth of vehicular traffic in and around Moscow in the 1950s made the city planners realize that Russia's largest...
) required a rapid-transit connection. But a question of whether it was practical to bore tunnels that far was raised. In the late 1980s,
MoscowMoscow is the capital and the largest city of Russia. It is also the largest metropolitan area in Europe, and ranks among the largest urban areas in the world. Moscow is a major political, economic, cultural, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the world, a...
's urban design bureau,
Metrogiprotrans, developed a series of projects that would bring rapid-transit beyond MKAD, with the southern district of Butovo being the first one.
The term
Light Metro was applied to these new projects, as it would feature an elevated track on a continuous flyover. Specific rolling stock had to be developed to serve the track, as it would have to be resistant to the open climate elements and sharper bends. For ease of operation, the Light Metro was integrated into the classical Metro service.
The Butovskaya Line essentially continues the Serpukhovsky radius of the
Serpukhovsko-Timiryazevskaya LineSerpukhovsko-Timiryazevskaya Line is a line of the Moscow Metro. Originally opened in 1983 it was extended throughout the 1980s and early 90s and again in the early 2000s. It is the world's second longest Metro line; its current length is 41.5 km...
. For convenience, the first 1.8 kilometres were bored in a tunnel allowing for a convenient transfer with the terminus of the main line,
Bulvar Dmitriya DonskogoBoulevard Dmitriya Donskogo is the southern terminus and the newest station of the Serpukhovsko-Timiryazevskaya Line of the Moscow Metro. It is the first station of the system built outside of the MKAD beltway encircling most of the city. The station opened on 26 December 2002...
. For the rest of its length it follows a flyover, guarded by a sound barrier, with both single and dual tracks. Currently, four Light Metro stations, each of identical design, are in operation. The system was opened in December 2003.
Timeline
| Segment | Date opened | Length |
|---|
| Ulitsa Strarokachalovskaya-Buninskaya Alleya |
December 27 2003 |
5.5 km |
| Total: |
5 Stations |
5.5 km |
Transfers
| # | Transfer to | At |
|---|
| 9 |
Serpukhovsko-Timiryazevskaya Line Serpukhovsko-Timiryazevskaya Line is a line of the Moscow Metro. Originally opened in 1983 it was extended throughout the 1980s and early 90s and again in the early 2000s. It is the world's second longest Metro line; its current length is 41.5 km...
|
Ulitsa Starokachalovskaya Ulitsa Starokachalovskaya is a station on the Butovskaya Light Metro Line of the Moscow Metro subway system in Moscow, Russia. The station, opened with four other light metro stations on 27 December 2003, is named for the street under which the station lies...
|
Rolling stock
The line shares the Varshavskoe depot (№ 8) with the Serpukhovsko-Timiryazevskaya Line. Specially built 81-740/741
Rusich81-740/741 Rusich , is a type of rolling stock specially designed for running under the harsh winter climate of outdoor Moscow. Rusich also features a corridor connection, allowing passenger access between cars...
trains serve this line. These are adapted to surface climate and to more rigorous bends and folds in the track. A total of 12 three-carriage trains are currently assigned.
Recent developments and future plans
Although the Light Metro was indeed innovative, it also received its share of criticism from different social groups and the media, which could well affect its future.
The main problems arose from finances, as the design was originally planned to be cost-saving; however, the BLLM turned out to be more expensive than conventional Metro lines. Passenger discomfort arose from shorter trains and larger intervals, but in particular from the transfer at
Ulitsa StarokachalovskayaUlitsa Starokachalovskaya is a station on the Butovskaya Light Metro Line of the Moscow Metro subway system in Moscow, Russia. The station, opened with four other light metro stations on 27 December 2003, is named for the street under which the station lies...
/
Bulvar Dmitriya DonskogoBoulevard Dmitriya Donskogo is the southern terminus and the newest station of the Serpukhovsko-Timiryazevskaya Line of the Moscow Metro. It is the first station of the system built outside of the MKAD beltway encircling most of the city. The station opened on 26 December 2002...
, where the Light Metro station consists of two separated platforms on either side of the main line with no reversal sidings behind it. As a result passengers must queue for lengthier times at a platform and also deal with exiting traffic before boarding their train. Additional problems arose from the landscape damage done by the flyover.
Furthermore, costly and embarrassing improvements had to be made just a few months after opening. First, improvements had to be made to the faulty new trains, as they required immediate and unforeseen refits; in addition, despite the sound barriers, further noise reduction works had to be carried out on the tracks themselves by repairing their joints.
Despite the criticism, the Moscow Metro continues to put forward several expansion programmes for the BLLM, the first one of which is to place proper reversal sidings north of the station thus separating the terminus platforms into northbound and southbound roles; at present this is announced for 2009. After the completion of that there was initially a planned northwestwards underground extension towards the terminus of the
Kaluzhsko-Rizhskaya LineKaluzhsko-Rizhskaya Line is a line of the Moscow Metro, that originally existed as two separate radial lines, Rizhskaya and Kaluzhskaya opened in 1958 and 1962, respectively. Only in 1971 were they united into a single line as the central section connecting the stations Oktyabrskaya to Prospekt...
, Bittsevsky Park scheduled for 2007. Since then Moscow Metro has postponed the project and even taken it off its list of primarily projects to be completed by 2015.
A further three-station expansion to the southeast, as Butovo continues to grow, is proposed: Ulitsa Staropotapovskaya, Ulitsa Ostafyevskaya and Novokuryanovo, along with a new depot. The latter's construction might prove pivotal as it would allow for the line to become more independent in operation.
The problems with the BLLM have also affected the prospect of other Light Metro lines in general as the second planned line, the Solntsevskaya Light Metro Line, has now been cancelled. Its construction was planned to begin in 2004, with the line expected to open in 2006, but after repeated postponements, Moscow Metro decided that it would be more practical to revert to an older project—a conventional,
Solntsevskaya LineSolntsevskaya Line is a future Moscow Metro line that will see the expansion of the metro to the Solntsevo District in Moscow.-First project - radius:...
. After the SLLM's cancellation, there have been concerns that BLLM's fate could be much worse, as there are arguments that it would be more practical to disassemble the line and replace it with two-three station extension of the STL.
Despite the shortcomings, one positive aspect of the BLLM was the
RusichRusich is a word in some Slavic languages meaning "Rus person" . Modern name Rusyn originated from Rus. The term may refer to one of the following*Metro wagon 81-740/741 Rusich*Rusich...
trains, serial production of the rolling stock, have gained wider usage and are now dominant on the
Filyovskaya LineFilyovskaya Line , a line of the Moscow Metro. Chronologically the sixth to open, it connects the major eastern districts of Dorogomilovo and Fili along with the Moscow City with the city centre...
, having replaced all of the older trains and is now growing its share of the
Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya LineThe Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya Line is a line of the Moscow Metro. Chronologically the second to open, now it connects the major Izmaylovo District on the east of Moscow, and the Strogino District on the west, with the city centre...
.