Every day, dozens of people descend into the depths of the Kiev subway and take trains between long-familiar stations. Yet the metro’s secret side lies between those brightly lit stations, hidden and unknown to us. What lurks in the darkness of the tunnels? Let’s take a look at the places passengers can never reach.
Abandoned tunnels in the Kyiv subway
The metro keeps growing, and some stretches of track become redundant. The Khreshchatyk–University section was no longer needed by the late 1980s, once the “Teatralnaya” station and the Syretsko-Pecherskaya branch were built.
Rusty rails
Most of the track was dismantled, but you can still find the occasional old, rusty rail.
Abandoned toilets
Because the Kyiv metro is essentially one enormous bunker, this photo shows the entrances to abandoned toilets. These lavatories were built to protect the people who would live in the tunnels after a nuclear attack from disease.
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Part of the ventilation system
The track in these abandoned tunnels has now been removed, and the tunnels serve as part of the ventilation system.
A hermetic seal is a special airtight protective door that seals off the tunnels — for example, in the event of a natural disaster. On the first stretch of subway to open in Kiev (Vokzalnaya–Dnipro), these gates stood on every section, though there was none between Shuliavskaya and Vokzalnaya. Later seals took the form of swing gates. The earliest ones, such as the seal between “Arsenalnaya” and “Vokzalnaya,” slid sideways out of a special niche. This piece of civil-defense equipment will never be closed again.
What could be hidden beneath a grate like this? A descent to the Syretsko-Pecherskaya branch. In the distance, the steps lead up to the arch of the “Golden Gate” station.
Service-connecting line
The service-connecting line unites all three branches of the subway. The SCL links three stations: Khreshchatyk, Independence Square, and Klovska. This connecting branch isn’t used for passenger traffic. Have you ever seen an empty train pull into a station and then slip quickly into a tunnel without any passengers? It’s using the SCL.
The SCL central chamber
The right-hand tunnel leads to “Klovska” station, the left-hand one to “Kreschatyk” station.
The heart of the Kiev metro
This spot is the geographical center of the Kiev metro.
Soon a second service-connecting line will appear in Kiev (SCL 221). This future SCL will connect the Syretsko-Pecherska line with the planned Podolsk-Voskresenskaya line.
The exit ramp down to SCL 221 lies behind “Lukyanovka” station — a dead-end track held in reserve for the SCL. At the end of the tunnel there is a concrete stopper.
The Lvivska Brama station
The legendary “Lvivska Brama” station. Despite the tales of flooding, mysticism, and secret archives, construction of the station stopped in 1997 because the dense surrounding buildings made it impossible to build an exit into the city. One day, though, it will open, giving us a metro link between “Lukyanovskaya” and “Golden Gate” stations. Less famous than the previous one, the “Telychka” station hides on the right bank near the South Bridge. It is waiting for residential districts to rise on the site of the industrial zone.
Trains pass through the unfinished station but never stop.
Central hall
The station’s central hall is off-limits because of the motion sensors inside. People can go in only once a year, and only with an official group.
Gerzena Station
The fairy tale about a secret subway line for the Higher Party School of the Central Committee of the Communist Party (now KIIR) hides a grain of truth. The unfinished “Herzen” (Zagorovskaya) station hides near the Institute of International Relations. Originally, an evacuation exit was built here for the party elite. Will there ever be a real station between “Dorogozhichi” and “Lukyanovskaya”? Who knows.
Metro Command Bunker
Near the “Maydan Nezalezhnosti” station you can find a whole complex of unfinished vertical shafts, and through them you can reach a large tunnel running parallel to the station. Officially, it is considered an abandoned passage to the Red Line, where a horizontal escalator was once planned. There are rumors, however, that it is actually a bunker.
Unfinished and abandoned
This tunnel was meant to be divided into three floors.
The tunnel is about 10 meters in diameter.
Access tunnels with trolleys lead to the main unit.
Arsenalan Maintenance Depot
Arsenalnaya, the deepest metro station, is also often said to conceal mysterious bunkers, passages to the secret government metro branch, and so on. In reality, what lies there is a disused maintenance depot (MD), Arsenalnaya.
The hall behind the Arsenalnaya station leads to the maintenance depot.
Under the rails in the maintenance depot there is a special pit that makes servicing the trains easier.
Kyiv Underground Tunnels Tour — the most unusual form of entertainment you’ll ever experience!
Unfinished Abandoned Diesel Bunker
This bunker sits parallel to the working subway tunnel, and even the workers who spend every night in the tunnels don’t know it’s there. It was under construction from 1987 to 1989, after which the government stopped funding the project, and it has now stood abandoned for 29 years. This huge labyrinth of tunnels is the size of a city block, and we spent 3 hours just exploring all of them.
Please remember that the subway isn’t the best place for a stroll, so don’t try to explore it on your own. It’s illegal, and on top of that, walking in the tunnels can be deadly, since the contact rail carries 825 volts DC.
If you are an adventurer and physically fit, we can show you the Kyiv metro tunnels. You’ll visit one of the places below with an experienced urbex guide. If you’re looking for adventure, please contact us by e-mail at info@urbextour.com
Or join our Kyiv Combo Urbex Tour, where you’ll visit both the tunnel system and an abandoned bunker.