Helsinki Metro
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The Helsinki Metro, or Helsingin metro in Finnish, is the metro system in Helsinki, Finland. The system maintains a single forked line with 16 stations, out of which 8 are subterranean and 8 are surface stations.
The metro was first opened in 1982, running from Itäkeskus (Östra Centrum) to Hakaniemi (Hagnäs). By the next year the Rautatientori (Järnvägstorget) and Kamppi (Kampen) stations were opened too. The tracks were extended to Mellunmäki (Mellungsbacka) in 1989, and further to Ruoholahti (Gräsviken) and Vuosaari (Nordsjö) towards the end of the 1990s.
The metro system is operated by the city-owned Helsinki City Transport (HKL, Helsingin kaupungin liikennelaitos).
Helsinki_metro_train_on_a_bridge.jpg
Helsinki_metro_interior.jpg
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Technology
There are currently two different models of Metro Train in service. The 100 series was built by Stromberg in the late 1980's and the new 200 series was built by Bombardier and has been used since 2002. The metro system is even today modern, compared to most other metros in the world.
Planned extensions
Länsimetro ("Western Metro"), an extension of the Helsinki Metro line westward to Espoo (Esbo), has been planned for several years. It is a joint effort by three parties: Helsinki, Espoo and the Finnish state. However, Espoo has been strongly opposed to financing the extension, holding back all progress.
The line is planned to reach at least the technical university campus at Otaniemi and the commercial and residential centre at Tapiola and is expected to run through other important areas such as Lauttasaari (Drumsö).
There is also talk of a new station being opened between Sörnäinen (Sörnäs) and Kulosaari (Brändö) called Kalasatama (Fiskhamnen). This is due to open in 2006.
Other future extensions have been planned to connect Pasila (Böle) to Kamppi (Kampen) via Töölö, and Kruunuvuorenranta, a future suburb, also to Kamppi.
See also
External links
- Helsinki City Transport (http://www.hel.fi/hkl/english.html)
- Metro Website of the Finnish Tramway Society (http://www.nettilinja.fi/~ahellman/metro/)
- UrbanRail - Helsinki (http://www.urbanrail.net/eu/hel/helsinki2.htm)de:U-Bahn Helsinki
nl:Metro van Helsinki fi:Helsingin metro sv:Metro (Helsingfors)