As of November 2024, the longest stretch between Moscow metro stations was considered to be the Strogino – Krylatskoye stretch (6,473 meters), with a travel time of 7-8 minutes.
In 1993, the longest stretches were:
- 4,478 m. Sportivnaya - (Leninskiye Gory) - Universitet (a temporary emergency-era record from 1986-2002, trains rerouted around the closed emergency station)
- 3,413 m. Volgogradsky Prospekt - Tekstilshchiki, (the absolute record from 1966-1986)
- 3,354 m. Avtozavodskaya - Kolomenskaya, (1969-2015, now split into two parts)
- 3,349 m. Tushinskaya - Shchukinskaya, (1975-2014)
- 2,919 m. Paveletskaya - Avtozavodskaya, (the absolute record from 1943-1966)
- 2,817 m. Kolomenskaya - Kashirskaya.
Anyone familiar with the geography of the Moscow Metro knows that the journey described above passes through three long stretches in a row: Paveletskaya - Avtozavodskaya - Kolomenskaya - Kashirskaya.
It's worth noting that the Moscow Metro is distinguished by its long stretches. This is tied to the history of the metro's construction in the mid-1930s. Building stations every 500 meters, as in London, wasn't an option for the young Soviet state — there wasn't enough money. It was decided to place metro stations at intersections of tram stops, since trams were plentiful, unlike in London.
This is how the concept took hold — of placing a metro station at a transport hub, from where a tram, trolleybus, or bus would take citizens right to their door. In the capitalist world things were different — metro stations were packed close together, so a passenger could walk home in five minutes without having to turn to competitors — the very same bus, trolleybus, and tram companies dividing up the profit pie on their own.