The Budapest Metro is the rapid transit system in the Hungarian capital Budapest. It is the oldest electrified underground railway system in continental Europe, and is only pre-dated by the London Underground. Budapest's iconic Line 1 was completed in 1896. The M1 line became an IEEE Milestone due to the radically new innovations in its era: "Among the railway’s innovative elements were bidirectional tram cars; electric lighting in the subway stations and tram cars; and an overhead wire structure instead of a third-rail system for power." Since 2002, the M1 line was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
History
The original metro line 1 ran for 5 km from Vörösmarty tér to Széchenyi fürdő. Work on line 2 started in the 1950s, although the first section did not open until 1970. It follows an east–west route, connecting the major Keleti and Déli railway stations. Planning for Line 3 began in 1963 and construction started in 1970 with help of Soviet specialists. The first section, consisting of six stations, opened in 1976. It was extended to the south in 1980 with five additional stations, and to the north in 1981, 1984, and 1990, with nine additional stations. With a length of approximately and a total of 20 stations, it is the longest line in Budapest. In the 1980s and 1990s, Line 1 underwent major reconstruction. Of its 11 stations, eight are original and three were added during reconstruction. The original appearance of the old stations has been preserved, and each station feature displays of historical photographs and information. There is also a Millennium Underground Museum in the Deák Ferenc Square concourse.
Routes
The metro consists of four lines, each denoted by a different colour. M1 Földalatti runs from Mexikói út south-west towards the river. The M2 line travels east–west through the city, crossing the Duna. The M3 runs in a broadly north–south alignment, interchanging with the three other lines. The M4 line commences at Keleti pályaudvar and travels south-west, crossing the river, to terminate at Kelenföld vasútállomás.
Metro line M1
runs northeast from the city center on the Pest side under Andrássy út to the Városliget, or City Park. Like Metro 3, it does not serve Buda. Line 1, the oldest of the metro lines operating in Budapest, has been in constant operation since 1896. There are plans for the future for a resurrection with more stations.
Metro line M2
runs east–west from Déli pályaudvar in Buda's Krisztinaváros, through the city center, to Örs vezér tere in eastern Pest. It offers connections to Hungarian State Railways at Déli and Keleti pályaudvars, to metro Lines 1 and 3 at Deák Ferenc tér, to line 4 at Keleti pályaudvar, to suburban railway lines 8 and 9 at Örs vezér tere, and to suburban railway line 5 at Batthány tér. Prior to line 4's opening, it was the only metro line that served the Buda side of the river. Line 2 underwent major reconstruction in the late oughts, with all of the track and stations completed in 2008.
Metro line M3
runs in a north–south direction on the Pest side of the river and connects several populous residential areas with the Inner City. It has a transfer station with Line 1 and Line 2 at Deák Ferenc tér, and a transfer station for Line 4 at Kálvin tér. It is the longest line in the Budapest Metro, its daily ridership is estimated at 610,000.
Metro line M4
runs southwest–northeast from Kelenföldi pályaudvar in Buda's Kelenföld neighborhood to Keleti Railway Station in Józsefváros. With a length of, it connects to Hungarian State Railways at its termini, to the metro's Line 3 at Kálvin tér, and to Line 2 at Keleti. Line 4 was completed in March 2014 and comprises ten stations.
Future expansion
Metro line M5
The Purple Line 5 is a proposed north–south railway tunnel to connect the currently separated elements of the suburban rail network, namely the H5, H6 and H7 HÉV-lines, and optionally the Budapest-Esztergom and Budapest-Kunszentmiklós-Tass railway lines. Currently the project does not have mainstream political support, only included in long-term plans. The first phase would be the extension and connection of the southern H6 and H7 lines to the Astoria metro station via the Kálvin tér, thus connecting these lines to the metro lines M2 M3 and M4. The second phase would create a connection to the metro line M1 as well at the Oktogon, the M3 at Lehel tér then cross the Danube to the Buda side to connect the H5 HÉV towards Szentendre.
General information
Tickets and transfer system
The usual BKK tickets and passes can be used on all lines. Single tickets can be re-used when changing metro lines. There are plans for an automated fare collection system. A contract for a system was signed in 2014, but terminated in 2018 without completion.
