History
Yekaterinburg, formerly called Sverdlovsk, was always known as the informal capital of the Urals, a natural divide between Europe and Asia, between Siberia and the European Russia. The city grew very rapidly because it was an important industrial centre and a transport hub. Plans for a rapid-transit system began in the late 1970s, and in 1980 construction began.
The city's uneven landscape, as well as its layout with a very dense city centre, prompted to combine deep and shallow stations. On 26 April 1991, the sixth Metro of Russia and the thirteenth and last Metro of the Soviet Union, which had ceased to exist only a few months later, was finally opened to the public. However, the economic crisis of the early 1990s rocked the Metro very hard and the first stage encompassed only three stations. However, then Russian president Boris Yeltsin diverted funds to complete its construction and by 1995 the Metro was doubled in length. Since then, only two extensions have been built.
Read more about this topic: Yekaterinburg Metro
Famous quotes containing the word history:
“the future is simply nothing at all. Nothing has happened to the present by becoming past except that fresh slices of existence have been added to the total history of the world. The past is thus as real as the present.”
—Charlie Dunbar Broad (1887–1971)
“To summarize the contentions of this paper then. Firstly, the phrase ‘the meaning of a word’ is a spurious phrase. Secondly and consequently, a re-examination is needed of phrases like the two which I discuss, ‘being a part of the meaning of’ and ‘having the same meaning.’ On these matters, dogmatists require prodding: although history indeed suggests that it may sometimes be better to let sleeping dogmatists lie.”
—J.L. (John Langshaw)
“Regarding History as the slaughter-bench at which the happiness of peoples, the wisdom of States, and the virtue of individuals have been victimized—the question involuntarily arises—to what principle, to what final aim these enormous sacrifices have been offered.”
—Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770–1831)