The Moscow Metro has a long history of serving the capital of Russia, so beginning in 2015 with the 80th anniversary of the official opening, an annual ‘train parade’ has been held to celebrate the history of the system.
An example of these parades was that held on 15 May 2022, which was captured by Amery Tverskoy.
The seven trains taking part in the parade were:
- 00:13 Retro train “Sokolniki” (replica of an 1934-vintage train)
- 01:35 “Еж3” (Russian language) from 1973
- 02:55 Metrovagonmash 81-717/81-714 from 1978
- 04:09 “Rusich” from 2003
- 05:47 “Oka” from 2012
- 07:18 “Moskva-2” from 2016
- 08:27 “Moskva-2020” from 2020
The parade included both modern and historic trains.
The Moscow Metro is a world leader in the rate of renewal of carriages. From 2011 to 2021, the metro received more than 3,700 new cars, due to which the share of modern trains increased more than five times – to 70 percent.
Over 87 years, more than 10 types of trains ran along the metro lines. Different generations of cars are a unique reflection of the history of the Moscow Metro. Therefore, since 2015, a train parade has been held annually in honor of the metro’s birthday.
On May 14 and 15, on the Circle Line, passengers will be able to travel on any of seven types of trains; they will run counterclockwise.
And a static exhibition of historic trains was also held.
On May 13, an exhibition of retro cars opened on the third track of the Partizanskaya metro station. Until May 16, passengers can see five historic carriages that ran on the subway from the 1940s until 2008.
The oldest one presented at the exhibition is a G-type carriage. They have been running on metro lines as part of trains since 1940. The car of this type had more rounded outlines compared to its predecessors – A and B. They were the first to be painted blue, which later became traditional for metro rolling stock.
At the exhibition you can also see a type D carriage. It was produced since 1955, it was lighter, and also had improved electronic equipment compared to type G. Passengers will also see a type E carriage, it is four tons lighter than its predecessor and has wider doors.
In addition, it will be possible to inspect two service cars. Among them is UM5, the oldest track-measuring car, and the contact-battery electric locomotive VEKA.
Further reading
- Moscow Metro Celebrates 80th Birthday With ‘Parade of Trains’
- Train parade kicks off on Circle Line to mark 82nd years of Moscow metro (Russian language)
- Train parade and exhibition of retro cars: Moscow Metro celebrates its birthday (Russian language)
Pingback: A parade of historic trams on the streets of Moscow - Euro Gunzel