This Day, That Year

Item from March 14, 1992, in China Daily: The Beijing subway extension project is making substantial progress at Xidan, where a new station is being built. The station, 260 meters long, double-decked and with a three-arch roof spanning 26 meters and 96 columns, is said to be the most difficult construction project ever undertaken in Asia. ...

From an initial subway line that started running regularly in September 1981 to the full-length of Line 1 becoming operational on June 2000, the capital had only two subway lines for two decades.

Beijing's subway has since recorded rapid expansion. It now boasts 18 lines, 334 stations and 554 km of track in operation, making it the second-longest subway system in the world after the Shanghai Metro.