Yerevan metro expansion cost climbs to $287m

Yerevan’s planned metro expansion will require an estimated $287 million in investment, up sharply from an initial $50 million projection in 2022, senior City Hall official Anetta Babayan announced Monday.

The project involves building a new station in Yerevan’s residential Ajapnyak district, marking the metro’s first extension to the western side of the Hrazdan River gorge. Much of the cost comes from the need to construct a major bridge across the gorge, along with likely extensive redevelopment on the eastern side to make way for the tunnels.

At present, only three major bridges span the gorge within the city, all designed for vehicle traffic.

Mayor Tigran Avinyan said Monday the Ajapnyak station is the municipality’s top infrastructure priority

“It is our most important project. We’ll be reviewing updates to it every Monday,” he said.

The Yerevan Metro, which opened in 1981 and was last expanded in 1996, currently operates ten stations and covers only a limited portion of the capital. The design for the Ajapnyak station was prepared by a Russian company in 2023.

Both the municipality and the Armenian government, which is expected to provide a significant share of funding, have faced repeated criticism for delays in launching construction.