Budynok Rad (Kryvyi Rih Metrotram)

Budynok Rad ( _uk. Будинок Рад; _ru. Дом Советов, "Dom Sovetov"; literally: "House of Soviets") is a station on the Kryvyi Rih Metrotram. It opened on February 23, 1988 as part of the first segment of the second stage.

The station sits right in the centre of the city next to the city council building. When the station was opened, there were delays with the construction of two other stations, so to justify the system, a temporary shuttle service was organised with two three-car trams ferrying passengers between the city centre and the reversal ring on the Dzerzhinska station. On May 2, 1989, after the completion of the remaining two stations on the second stage, standard transit was possible and the shuttle service was discontinued.

The Budynok Rad along with its near-identical neighbour Prospekt Metalurhiv are the only stations that are built to the full Metro standard. Both have island platforms and are built to the full length and size of a Metro system. The platforms are even capable of being raised, which is noticeable in the staircase arrangement.

The station also lacks an external vestibule; instead, two vestibules are located underground on both ends of the platform with exits to the Nikolay Gogol Square. One of the biggest problems that arose with the construction of a Metro-type station was that Soviet Union design places doors only on the left side, meaning that the direction had to alternate prior to arriving at the station (given the right-hand rail operation used in the USSR). As a result, the tunnels cross before reaching the station and continue on the same side until Prospekt Metalurhiv where they cross back to the standard right-hand arrangement

The station is a typical single vault of (Kharkov design). The two stations are also most extravagant, which is another trademark of . Whereas other stations make use of the architecture of the surface structure and arrange the interior to be aesthetic, this station is exactely the opposite. Red marble is used for the walls and floor; the ceiling of the vault consists of a hexagonal honeycomb arrangement. Three mosaics with a Soviet theme are present on both walls. Lighting comes from a series of lightbulbs installed in the centre of each hexagon on the apexal rows of the vault. However, for financial reasons, it is rare that they are all turned on at once.

External links

*ru icon [http://www.metrophoto.iatp.org.ua/domsov.php Skorostnoy Tramvay] - Description and photos
*ru icon [http://metroworld.ruz.net/others/krr_03_budrad.htm Mir Metro] - Description and photos
* [http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&q=Kiev&t=h&om=1&ie=UTF8&ll=47.908576,33.396678&spn=0.003128,0.010815 Google maps] - Satellite shot.