Budapest metro line 3 upgraded

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Tracks and rail fastenings are being replaced on the whole line with the aim of creating a fully integrated superstructure. Modern lighting, ceilings and passenger information systems are to be installed in stations, while surface buildings and passenger areas are being renewed.To ensure safety, mechanical parts such as gear systems and automatic train control and stopping facilities – which stop trains automatically to prevent accidents due to human error – will be replaced. Automatic train control equipment, indicators and track circuits, which feed into signalling systems and consequently, passenger information screens, will be renovated.Improved accessibilityLine 3 has 20 stations; before the launch of the project, just two of them were accessible to people with reduced mobility. The upgrades will bring a further 11 into line with accessibility requirements.Commitments have also been made to ensure compliance with accessibility standards in the remaining seven stations by the end of 2023 through a series of parallel projects. The current project involved discussions between the National Federation of Disabled Persons’ Associations (MEOSZ) and the City of Budapest; as a result, the city council has allocated funding for the remaining accessibility works.Other elements of the project include installing a modern and uniform power supply system, which has numerous operating benefits and is expected to have a long lifespan. A new, integrated railway telecommunications system will also be fitted, replacing the current system on line 3 in order to meet technical requirements and provide the expected level of service.A long historyBudapest Metro is one of the oldest underground systems in the world and the oldest in continental Europe. It is the second oldest in the European Union after the London Underground. Line 1 opened in 1896, when it had 10 stations and ran north-east on the Pest, or eastern, side of the Danube, from Vörösmarty tér in the city centre to Széchenyi fürdő. A further station, Mexikói út, was added in 1973 and the line is now around 4.4 km long.Line 2 runs eastwards from Déli pályaudvar in Buda, on the western side of the Danube, under the river to the city centre, from where it continues to Örs vezér tere in Pest. It opened in 1970 and was extended in 1972. It has 11 stations and is 10.3 km long.The newest addition to the network, line 4, opened in 2014. Consisting of 10 stations and 7.4 km of track, it connects Kelenföld vasútállomás in Buda and Keleti pályaudvar in Pest.At 17.3 km, line 3 is the longest of the metro’s four lines. It was completed in 1976 and extended four times between 1980 and 1990. Entirely located on the Pest side, it runs in a north-south direction, almost parallel with the Danube, from Újpest-Központ to Kőbánya-Kispest, and connects a number of populous central districts. More than half a million people use it every day and the upgrades should provide the capacity to increase this figure by around 13 000.Total investment and EU fundingTotal investment for the project “Upgrading metro line M3” is EUR 800 255 744, with the EU’s Cohesion Fund contributing EUR 473 438 153 through the “Integrated Transport” Operational Programme for the 2014-2020 programming period.