Metropolitan EAD awarded a consortium of Siemens and Newag a €140m contract in March 2016 to supply 20 trains for the new east-west line, which is due to open in 2019.

The consortium unveiled the first train at the Newag plant in Nowy Sacz, Poland, on November 15 2017.

The 7km central section of Line 3 from Botevgradsko Shosse to Ovcha Kuptel will run entirely underground in a double-track bored tunnel and will have seven stations. When all phases are complete, the line will run for 16.5km from Vassil Levski in the east to Knazyhevo in the west, interchanging with Line 1 at St Clement and Line 2 at NDK.

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