- published: 23 Sep 2013
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The Berlin U-Bahn (from "Untergrundbahn", meaning "underground railway") is a rapid transit railway in Berlin, the capital city of Germany, and is a major part of the public transport system of the city. Opened in 1902, the U-Bahn serves 173 stations spread across ten lines, with a total track length of 146.3 kilometres (90.9 mi), about 80% of which is underground. Trains run every two to five minutes during peak hours, every five minutes for the rest of the day and every ten minutes in the evening. They travel 132 km (83 mi)[clarification needed], carrying 496 million passengers, over the year. The entire system is maintained and operated by the Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe, commonly known as the BVG.
Designed to alleviate traffic flowing into and out of central Berlin, the U-Bahn rapidly expanded until the city was divided into East and West Berlin at the end of World War II. Although the system initially remained open to residents of both sides, the construction of the Berlin Wall and the subsequent restrictions imposed by the East German government limited travel across the border: The East Berlin U-Bahn lines were severed from West Berlin; while two West Berlin lines that ran through East Berlin (U6 and U8) were allowed to pass through without stopping, although the stations were closed, with the exception of Friedrichstraße, used as a transfer point (between U6 and the West Berlin S-Bahn system) and a border crossing into East Berlin. The system was reopened completely following the fall of the Berlin Wall, and German reunification.
Berlin ( /bɜrˈlɪn/; German pronunciation: [bɛɐ̯ˈliːn] ( listen)) is the capital city of Germany and one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.5 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city and is the second most populous city proper and the eighth most populous urban area in the European Union. Located in northeastern Germany, it is the center of the Berlin-Brandenburg Metropolitan Region, which has 5.9 million residents from over 190 nations. Located in the European Plains, Berlin is influenced by a temperate seasonal climate. Around one third of the city's area is composed of forests, parks, gardens, rivers and lakes.
First documented in the 13th century, Berlin was the capital of the Kingdom of Prussia (1701–1918), the German Empire (1871–1918), the Weimar Republic (1919–1933) and the Third Reich (1933–1945).Berlin in the 1920s was the third largest municipality in the world. After World War II, the city became divided into East Berlin—the capital of East Germany—and West Berlin, a West German exclave surrounded by the Berlin Wall (1961–1989). Following German reunification in 1990, the city regained its status as the capital of Germany, hosting 147 foreign embassies.