Azerbaijan, Baku, Dec. 1 / Trend E. Kosolapova/
Kazakh largest city of Almaty, with a population of 1.5 million people, launched Metro on Dec.1, Novosti-Kazakhstan reported. It is the first metro in the country.
Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev took part in the opening ceremony.
The first line includes seven station with a total length of 8.56 kilometers.
Fares on Almaty metro is 80 tenge ($0.54), compared to 50 tenge ($0.34) in overland transport.
Construction of the Almaty metro started in 1988. The collapse of the Soviet Union stalled the work. Work here was renewed in 2005, within the framework of State program on Almaty development.
The construction worth about 165 billion tenge.
Construction of the second phase of the metro in Almaty is scheduled to begin in 2012. The construction will last more than six years, and worth roughly 227.3 billion tenge ($1.5 billion).
The second line will bring the metro outside the city center.