Kunming Metro, or Kunming Rail Transit, is a rapid transit system in Kunming, the capital of Yunnan Province. With a rapidly growing population of just over 3 million people at the time, Kunming was one of the largest cities in China without a metro system before its construction.[citation needed] The system currently consists of 6 lines with 4 more planned.
Background
The streets of Kunming have long been congested, and as such there have been talks of a subway system since the late 1990s. A 2006 proposal would have seen construction start in 2008 with a north-south line and an east-west line. The current rapid transit system was first announced in 2009, with construction scheduled to start later that year. The proposed routes would not only serve commuters in Kunming city centre, but would help encourage development to the city's southeast. The suburb of Chenggong has been the site of a recent construction boom, although most new developments were still unoccupied without adequate transit connections. Thus, the Kunming Metro served the dual purpose of alleviating traffic problems in the city's core and encouraging growth in the southeast.[citation needed]
Construction on Lines 1 and 2 officially began in May 2010, after months of delays.[2] An elevated test section had been under construction since 2009. Lines 1 (34 km) and 2 (22 km) were scheduled to open in 2012, but with delays, weren't opened until early 2013. Construction on Line 3 began in August 2010 and was opened on 29 August 2017.[3]
Construction of Line 1 was expected to cost as much as 32 billion yuan (US$4.5 billion), with each kilometer of elevated metro costing around 250 million yuan and each kilometer of underground subway expected to cost between 400 million and 800 million yuan. The primary contractor is China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC).
Rolling stock
The trains of Line 6 were manufactured by China South Locomotive & Rolling Stock Corporation Ltd (CSR) in Zhuzhou.[4] 6-car sets operate at 120 km/h. CSR met journalists in October 2011 to discuss the safety concerns arising from operating trains at such speeds.[5] Minor changes have been made to the rolling stock over time. Line 3 trains feature a digital route map with a basic UI. Line 4 trains have darker flooring, a new TV interface, and a completely remade route map UI. Line 5 trains reverted the flooring color back to white, remade the TV interface again, changed Line 4's route map UI, and feature projectors on the sides of the train that project advertisements onto the tunnel walls.[citation needed]
Line 1 is currently 33.3 km long with 22 stations, running from South Ring Road to University Town (South) and Kunming South railway station. Lines 1 and 2 currently have through service, which will end when Line 1 Northwest Extension and Line 2 Phase 2 are completed, turning South Ring Road into an interchange station. After the Northwest Extension opens, Line 1 will run from Jiaochang North Road to University Town (South) and Kunming South Railway Station. The first phase of Line 1 came into operation on May 20, 2013.[6] The second phase of Line 1 came into operation on April 30, 2014. Line 1 is Central Kunming's main metro link to Chenggong. A 5.3 km long branch line to Kunming South railway station was opened on 26 December 2016.[7] Line 1's color is red.
Line 2 is currently 12.4 km long with 14 stations, running from North Coach Station to South Ring Road. Lines 1 and 2 currently have through service, which will end when Line 1 Northwest Extension and Line 2 Phase 2 are completed, turning South Ring Road into an interchange station. After Phase 2 opens, Line 2 will run from North Coach Station to Haidong Park. The first phase of Line 2 came into operation on April 30, 2014. Line 2's route consists of a short elevated section from North Coach Station to Longtou Street and an underground section beneath Beijing Road until the line's current terminus at South Ring Road. Phase 2 will be dug beneath Guannan Avenue and Fubao Road towards Haidong Park. It is Kunming's main north-south line. Line 2's color is blue.
Line 3 started operation on 29 Aug 2017, consisting of 19.16 km of line with 20 stations running from Western Hills Park to East Coach Station. It is Kunming's main east-west line.[8] Line 3's color is magenta.
Line 4 started operation on 23 September 2020, consisting of 43.4 km of line with 29 stations running from Jinchuan Road to Kunming South Railway Station.[9] It connects Northwest Kunming and Eastern Kunming to the metro while serving as a second link to Chenggong. Line 4 has cartoon mascots exclusive to the line known as the "K4 Cats" that promote ridership of the line. Line 4's color is orange.
Line 5 started operation on 29 June 2022, consisting of 26.5 km of line with 22 stations running from World Horti-Expo Garden to Baofeng.[10] Line 5 serves as a tourism line, linking tourist destinations such as World Horti-Expo Garden, Caohai Dam, and Haigeng Park. Line 5's color is green.
Line 6 consists of 25.3 km of line with 8 stations running from Kunming Airport to Tangzixiang. Phase 1 opened on 28 June 2012. Phase 2 opened on 23 September 2020, extending the line to Tangzixiang station just south of Kunming's city center.[9]It is an airport express line connecting the city center with the new Kunming Changshui International Airport.[11] Its original terminus at East Coach Station was not connected to any other line until the opening of Line 3 in 2017. The two intermediate stations between East Coach Station and Kunming Airport were built as infill stations.[11] Line 6 temporary ceased operation on 5 March 2016 to complete the two infill stations and reentered operation on 29 August 2017 with a total of four stations.[8] Line 6's color is teal.
Under construction
Line 9, the Songming Line, the Anning Line and the extensions of Lines 1 and 2 are under construction. All station names that are included in phase 1 have been confirmed.[12]
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