Nizhny Metro Construction Sites: 5 Years in Photos
Downtown Nizhny Novgorod has been living with huge construction sites for the fifth year now: on Gorky Street, Freedom Square, and Sennaya Square, the metro is being extended. The opening date of the long-awaited new stations has been postponed several times. Residents hope that at least the latest deadline — 2027 — will finally bring them the «new stations». NN.RU shows how the construction sites in the Nagornaya (Upland) part have changed over such a long period.
Sennaya Square
In 2022, fencing was installed around the metro construction site on Sennaya Square in Nizhny Novgorod. The first excavations began between houses No. 60 and 66 on Bolshaya Pecherskaya Street. On Sennaya, utility networks were relocated and the last structures within the work zone were demolished. In 2023, the pouring of piles for the initial metro pit began.
The contractor also began preparing the site to receive the tunnel boring machine (TBM): the ground had to be reinforced for its assembly. The metro construction on Sennaya gradually expanded with new sites. One of them was equipped for constructing turnaround sidings for trains.
In summer 2023, a 16-meter (52.5 ft) deep pit was excavated on Sennaya Square — the maximum planned depth. After that, the concrete base for the new metro station was poured. In September 2023, the TBM «Vladimir» arrived. It was assembled and launched toward Freedom Square in early 2024.
After completing this stage, construction of another tunnel began. For the second time, «Vladimir» arrived at Sennaya in April 2025. Late that year, the second tunnel was completed. At the start of 2026, work began on the framework of the future Sennaya metro station. During the same period, construction of the turnaround sidings started.
Freedom Square
In 2023, Freedom Square was closed off for metro construction and the site was prepared for work. The first major milestone was to receive the TBM «Vladimir», which was moving from the future station at Sennaya.
Preparations for this began in early 2025. In April, the cutterhead of the TBM was retrieved from the pit. It was received here again late that year after the second tunnel was bored.
In spring 2026, construction of the first section of the Freedom Square metro station began. Also, the left running tunnel is currently being bored toward Freedom Square from Gorky Street.
Maxim Gorky Street
On Gorky Street, metro tunnels are being built to connect the Gorkovskaya and Freedom Square stations. Preparatory work began here in 2022. In early 2023, metro builders removed the first bucket of earth at the site of what was then a future pit, but work quickly stopped.
In 2024, construction had to be frozen due to risks to the medical center annex of the Volgotransgaz building at the intersection of Gorky and Studenaya streets. The building fell within the zone of influence of the construction, allegedly because it had been originally built incorrectly. Specialists began geological surveys to determine how to reinforce the annex«s structures.
Work resumed only after the aforementioned building was reinforced. In early 2026, the contractor again began forming the starting pit. In April, they started pouring the concrete base. In May, the TBM «Evdokiya» was launched. It began constructing a new — left — metro tunnel under Gorky Street to the Freedom Square station.
The deadlines for the new metro stations in Nizhny Novgorod have been repeatedly postponed. This has been attributed partly to unforeseen circumstances and a shortage of workers.
Originally, a new station in the Sormovsky district was to be completed in 2026. But preparatory work is still ongoing there. The contract for metro construction in Sormovo was signed in summer 2022. The project cost 19.4 billion rubles (almost twice as expensive as the Strelka station on Meshchera, and around $194 million at current rates). It was decided to locate the station away from the district center — on Stationnaya (Station) Street.
