greater manchester free bus travel

Roads and transport Concessionary travel passes

Who can apply.

If you're eligible you can apply for a Concessionary Pass that will allow you to travel on reduced fares - or for free - across Greater Manchester and (in some cases) nationally. Note: Concessionary passes are issued by Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM), not Manchester City Council.

To apply you'll need to visit the  Concessionary fares page of the TfGM website , where you'll find full details.

Eligibility is generally for:

• people over 60
• disabled people
• blind or partially sighted people
• deaf people
• young people under 16
• young people over 16

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Explore Greater Manchester without limits - FREE bus travel and opportunities for 16-18 year olds

Our Pass will make getting to college, into training and into work easier and unlock many other benefits

• 10:15, 5 JUL 2019
• Updated 10:52, 5 JUL 2019

Travelling in and around the city region can often feel impossible for young people who live in Greater Manchester boroughs.

Those who cannot afford the daily cost of a bus ticket may miss out on various work, learning or social opportunities due to their transport limits.

Now a brand new bus pass has been launched that will revolutionise the lives of youngsters across the city region.

Young people aged 16-18 can apply for Our Pass now, for a one off £10 administration fee, and start using the card from September 1.

Applicants must be aged at least 16 and under 18 on Saturday, August 31.

The Our Pass card unlocks free bus travel across Greater Manchester - meaning young people and their families could make potential savings of more than £500.

More than just a bus travel card, students and young workers will also have access to various exciting sports, culture and leisure opportunities, experiences and exclusive offers.

Over an initial pilot of two years, opportunities will include anything from tickets for sports, music, culture events and leisure attractions; to careers events and taster days.

A sample of the opportunities that will go live this September include: free tickets for the Hallé, The Palace, Opera House and the Manchester Giants; and fitness and activity sessions with Challenge 4 Change, Helly Hansen Watersports Centre and Oldham Boxing Club.

Homegrown Park Life and Vimto are also putting the weight of their brands behind the pilot in a series of competitions - with more opportunities to be announced in the next few weeks.

Greater Manchester’s JD, the international sports-fashion retail company, has also confirmed a sponsorship deal for the two year pilot.

The Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, is committed to opening up more opportunities for young people across the city, giving them more hope and freedom for their future after school.

At the beginning of the Mayor's term, The Youth Combined Authority (YCA) was tasked with scoping the development of an opportunity pass across Greater Manchester.

Andy Burnham, said: “I hope that Our Pass will change the lives of young people across Greater Manchester.

"For too long, they have been Westminster’s target for cuts and negative publicity.

"In Greater Manchester, we are using devolution to make young people our priority for investment.

“Our Pass is designed to send everyone growing up here a simple message: we believe in you and want you to have high ambitions for where you can go and what you can achieve.

"This amazing place is yours to explore, to shape and to build for the future.”

A diverse range of teenagers from across the city worked with experts from Greater Manchester’s creative and design industry to come up with their own design and name.

Together, they created a bright purple card named Our Pass, which is set to be a great asset to their lives.

Our Pass is named and designed by young people, for young people, with an aim to support and inspire them at a crucial point in their lives.

Hania Sulaiman, Chair of Greater Manchester’s Youth Combined Authority, said: “The Youth Combined Authority was asked by Andy to help come up with ideas for a new opportunity pass.

"Over the last few months, along with other youth groups across Greater Manchester, we’ve helped to choose the name, design and have our say on how we want the card to work for us.

"Today shows what can be achieved when young people are listened to and they are given the chance to develop something new.

"I can’t wait to start using Our Pass this September.” 

Transport for Greater Manchester estimates 26% of the city region’s 16-18 population currently use bus as their primary mode of transport.

Our Pass aims to encourage more young people to use bus services to get around the city region.

Whilst current bus services cannot connect to every opportunity, Our Pass will transform public transport accessibility for 16-18 year old Greater Manchester residents.

Our Pass Lead Rose Marley added: “Our Pass is timed to coincide with a crucial moment in young people’s lives.

"As they leave school at 16, they face decisions that will shape the course of their lives – whether to undertake further study and training, for example, or whether and where to get a job.

“Our Pass tackles these challenges by giving young people real freedom of travel, helping them take up further learning or work, and exposing them to the wealth of opportunities that exist in their city-region.”

Terms and conditions

Applications for Our Pass can be made online now.

You must be a Greater Manchester resident aged 16-18 to apply.

Greater Manchester includes: Bury, Bolton, Manchester, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford and Wigan.

Your pass is valid until August 31 after your 18th birthday.

You will need proof of age and address, a photo and a credit/debit card to pay the £10 administration fee to apply.

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Free bus travel for Greater Manchester teenagers launched

• Published 1 July 2019

Teenagers aged 16 to 18 will be able to use free bus travel across Greater Manchester from September.

The Our Pass travel card was launched by mayor Andy Burnham, who said: "We are using devolution to make young people our priority for investment."

An increase on council tax of £7 per household will fund the £15m annual costs, while JD Sports has invested "a six-figure sum".

Mr Burnham said the pass could save families more than £500 per year.

He said: "I hope that Our Pass will change the lives of young people across Greater Manchester. For too long they have been Westminster's target for cuts and negative publicity.

"Our Pass is designed to send everyone growing up here a simple message - we believe in you and want you to have high ambitions for where you can go and what you can achieve. This amazing place is yours to explore, to shape and to build for the future."

Transport for Greater Manchester estimates only 26% of the city region's 16-18 population currently use buses as their primary mode of transport.

Applications include a one-off administration fee of £10.

More on this story

Council tax rise to fund teen bus pass

• Published 21 January 2019

Mayor unveils £240m 'Congestion Deal'

• Published 23 March 2018

Half-price bus tickets for 16 to 18s

• Published 16 June 2017

Mayor wants 'London-style' bus system

• Published 4 December 2017

Related Internet Links

Greater Manchester Combined Authority

Our Pass - Travel Pass for 16-18 year olds

  Our Pass gives 16-18 year olds  free bus travel*  across Greater Manchester

Our Pass opportunities Our Pass is not just a bus travel card – cardholders will have access to lots of opportunities, experiences and benefits.

How to apply You must be a Greater Manchester resident and be aged at least 16 and under 18. Your pass is valid until 31 August after your 18th birthday. Apply online at  ourpass.co.uk  you will need proof of your age and address, a photo and a credit/debit card to pay the £10 administration fee.

Who to contact

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Update on concessionary travel

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Greater Manchester is making a number of changes to concessionary travel arrangements. This update sets out the latest policy position.

At present, different concessionary schemes are not consistent in the way they charge people for the issuing of a pass. We are proposing to make them more consistent with Greater Manchester’s commitment to equality and fair treatment across the ages.  

Our Pass and igo card

The two concessionary schemes for young people – the igo card and Our Pass - provide discounted travel for young people.

Our Pass, which begins in September 2019, will provide all 16-18 year olds who live in Greater Manchester to get free bus travel and half-price off peak travel on Metrolink.

The igo card allows all GM residents and those in GM schools aged 11-16 to pay the child fare on bus and Metrolink across Greater Manchester.

The igo card has a one-off £10 administration charge and this will now be applied to Our Pass.

Women’s Concessionary Travel Pass

This pass was introduced to help women born between 6 October 1953 and 5 November 1954 who were affected by the change to pension age through the 2011 Pensions Act.

This pass provides free off-peak bus, tram and train travel to all those women who are Greater Manchester residents affected as above.

There is a one-off £10 administration fee for this pass and it is proposed that this remains the case.

Older People’s Concessionary Pass

All people of pension age can benefit from a free off-peak bus pass and travel through the English National Concessionary Travel Scheme.

In Greater Manchester, we took the decision to enhance the national scheme by including free off-peak tram and train travel. 

At present, there is no fee associated with this scheme.

All older residents of Greater Manchester will continue to benefit from an entitlement to a free bus travel with no fee.

However, to ensure greater consistency with other schemes, a £10 annual fee is proposed for the inclusion in the Older People’s Concessionary Pass of free tram and train travel.

With the number of over-65s expected to increase by 44% by 2028, it will also help ensure the Pass is sustainable in the long term.

A similar charge is in operation in Tyne and Wear where Nexus charges an annual fee of £12 for off-peak and holiday travel on the Metro, the Shields Ferry and on Northern Rail services between Newcastle and Sunderland.

If approved by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, the proposal will be introduced from early 2020. Ahead of any change, TfGM will provide more details of the scheme.

There will continue to be no costs associated with travel passes for disabled people.

Travel & Tourism

The free bus service that quietly loops around Manchester is being overhauled this weekend

The contract has ended, but the free buses remain - albeit with some changes.

Manchester’s often-overlooked free bus service is being given a shake-up this month, with two new routes and new destinations added.

The city centre’s free bus service has previously allowed people to get around town along three different circular routes.

Now, with its existing contract is coming to an end, the whole service is getting a revamp.

Mancs will still be able to use the buses to get to popular attractions like the Arndale shopping centre, the Royal Exchange , Manchester Art Gallery, The Science and Industry Museum,

It will also continue to link together transport hubs and railway stations around the city centre.

But as part of Transport for Greater Manchester and Manchester City Council’s promise to continue funding the service for the foreseeable, the previous three routes will be switched for two new ones, as well as new timetables.

New destinations will be added to the free shuttle bus trips around Manchester too, including HOME and Deansgate Locks.

The buses will run every 10 minutes between 7am and 7.30pm Monday to Saturday, and 10am to 6.30pm on Sundays and Bank Holidays.

Stephen Rhodes, TfGM’s Director of Bus, said: “The free bus has been a staple of Manchester city centre’s transport network since it was first introduced as Metroshuttle more than 20 years ago.

“The service is provided by TfGM and Manchester City Council, and by delivering these changes we are keen to build on this partnership and continue delivering the service for years to come.”

Neil Fairlamb, strategic director of neighbourhoods for Manchester City Council said: “The free bus services around Manchester are a vital asset for many of our residents, one which we are glad to continue funding alongside our partners at TfGM.

“We know that public transport is the better, more environmentally friendly way to travel and we hope that for many more years to come people will take advantage of this shuttle service.”

• Free bus 1 – a clockwise loop from Piccadilly rail station to Deansgate rail station, then via MOSI, Spinningfields and Chinatown back to Piccadilly. This route will provide a link from Piccadilly to attractions at the bottom end of Deansgate, such as MOSI and HOME, while maintaining links between Piccadilly and Spinningfields
• Free bus 2 – a clockwise loop from Piccadilly rail station to Chinatown, King Street, St Marys Gate, Victoria rail station and Shudehill, then back to Piccadilly. This route will provide a link from Piccadilly to the shopping areas of King Street, Market Street and Deansgate.

The revised free bus routes around Manchester will launch on 16 April. To find out more, visit tfgm.com/public-transport/bus/free-bus .

Featured image: Unsplash

North Wales is a pretty popular holiday destination for us Mancs, especially in the warmer months.

Seaside towns like Llandudno, Conwy and Colwyn Bay are often awash with tourists soaking in the Great British summer, clutching ice creams, skimming pebbles, and frantically shielding your chippy tea from dive-bombing seagulls.

So now that the Independent has singled out some of the UK’s best ‘secret’ beaches – including one in North Wales – we’ve got a new destination to play with.

The paper singled out the beautiful Porthdinllaen in its list of the best secret UK beaches to visit in 2024 for peace and quiet.

And aren’t we all after a bit of peace and quiet these days?

There’s just something about escaping the hustle and bustle of the city and feeling sand between your toes, maybe even taking a brave dip in the brisk waters.

The Independent selected Porthdinllaen in North Wales as well as R unswick Bay in Yorkshire as some of the UK’s best secret beaches.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Croeso Cymru (@croesocymru)

The list said of Porthdinllaen: “Offering sandy, secluded space to play, this Welsh beach is tucked away from the old fishing village by sweeping hills.

“As the cove is sheltered, the water is usually calm, making it a great spot for swimming.

“Bring goggles and be sure to look down: the headland is a popular spot with the local grey seals, and one of the largest seagrass meadows in North Wales hides beneath the water, providing a habitat for many different types of fish.”

Now does that not sound magical?

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Featured image: Geograph

Another bit of very well-deserved recognition for our city as the Manchester Museum has been shortlisted for the 2024 Art Fund Museum of the Year.

Organised by the independent and membership-based British charity, which raises funds through the collection of important works and artefacts, it’s world the single largest museum prize in the world.

Shining as one of the crown jewels in Manchester’s cultural scene , the museum has been named among five other impressive finalists for this year’s award, which is evaluating inspiring projects from autumn 2022 through to winter 2023.

This wonderful news comes at a good time for Manchester Museum , which recently welcomed its one-millionth visitor since reopening to the public in February last year, following a £15 million values-led redevelopment. It really is back with a bang.

Good luck @SkiptonTownHall @young_vam @DCAdundee @NPGLondon ! — Manchester Museum (@McrMuseum) April 30, 2024

With Art Fund keeping audiences and communities at their heart, the highly revered accolade has a particular focus on community engagement, sustainable ways of working, and demonstration of ambition by reinventing what it means to be ‘the best’ museum for the audiences of today and tomorrow.

For context, the Manchester Museum (which sits as part of the University of Manchester ) was the most visited indoor museum in the North of England throughout 2023, despite being shut for an entire month, welcoming a total of 790,332 people through their doors.

Speaking on this year’s selection, director Jenny Waldman, who heads up the 2024 judging panel, has applauded each of this year’s finalists for delivering “something for everyone” and keeping “community at the very heart of their programming.”

“Their commitment to innovative partnerships whilst operating within an extremely challenging funding environment is incredible”, she added. “I’m so pleased to see the way they support and centre young people through their work.

“Across a wide range of size and scale, these organisations are all real leaders in their field. I urge everyone to go and visit these extremely special spaces.” So do we.

As for the museum themselves, Director Esme Ward said of the announcement: “Manchester Museum’s redevelopment was the result of 10 years’ collective endeavour, so being shortlisted for Art Fund Museum of the Year is a moment of joy for everyone to share in, from staff and partners to our communities and Manchester itself.

“It is an affirmation of museums’ power to bring people together in building a more inclusive, hopeful future.”

Built on self-proclaimed values of “inclusion, imagination and care”, the museum’s recent reopening has positioned it at the forefront of the sector here in the UK, with new galleries, partnerships, visitor facilities, sector-leading programming and digital innovations.

These updates, along with their existing and award-winning South Asia Gallery – the largest and first permanent gallery in the UK to celebrate the experiences and contribution of the South Asian diaspora co-curated by members from the community itself – are what have helped put it in the running for this prestigious prize.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by THE MANC (@the.manc)

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Visitor numbers for the first year following reopening were up 157% on 2019/20, with 57% of those being new attendees and more than one in seven’s first trip to a museum ever.

The other four shortlisted museums are the Craven Museum in Skipton, North Yorkshire ; Dundee Contemporary Arts, the National Portrait Gallery in London and the Young V&A – Victoria and Albert Museum, also in the capital.

The winning museum will be announced at a ceremony at the National Gallery in London on 10 July and will receive £120,000 to put towards internal projects and cultural work. Better still, £15,000 will be given to each of the four other finalists, so everyone’s a winner in a way.

Congratulations again to everyone at Manchester Museum and well done for all your incredible hard work – we can’t wait to be right about you again in a couple of months when we’re confident you’ll be rightly named as the winner of the 2024 Art Fund Museum of the Year.

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester,  subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE .

Featured Images — Supplied/Matthew (via Flickr)

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Get Connected With Travel Across Greater Manchester

by Simon Pook | Mar 15, 2022 | 11-15 , 16-18 , 19-24 , 24+ , Guides

• If you’re under 16, you can sign up for the igo card
• If you’re 16-18, you can sign up for Our Pass
• If you’re a care leaver, you can get free bus travel until your 21 st birthday (thanks to a commitment made by Our Pass and the Prince’s Trust)

Keep your travel costs down with an igo card

• Be aged between 5 and 16
• Be a permanent resident of, or go to school in, Greater Manchester

Save money with Our Pass

Free bus travel for care leavers, privacy overview.

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The trains and stations of the Moscow Metro

2 Comments · Posted by Alex Smirnov in Cities , Travel , Video

The Moscow Metro is the third most intensive subway system in the world after Tokyo and Seoul subways. The first line was opened on May 15, 1935. Since 1955, the metro has the name of V.I. Lenin.

The system consists of 12 lines with a total length of 305.7 km. Forty four stations are recognized cultural heritage. The largest passenger traffic is in rush hours from 8:00 to 9:00 and from 18:00 to 19:00.

Cellular communication is available on most of the stations of the Moscow Metro. In March 2012, a free Wi-Fi appeared in the Circle Line train. The Moscow Metro is open to passengers from 5:20 to 01:00. The average interval between trains is 2.5 minutes.

The fare is paid by using contactless tickets and contactless smart cards, the passes to the stations are controlled by automatic turnstiles. Ticket offices and ticket vending machines can be found in station vestibules.

Tags:  Moscow city

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Tomás · August 27, 2012 at 11:34 pm

The Moscow metro stations are the best That I know, cars do not.

Alberto Calvo · September 25, 2016 at 8:57 pm

Great videos! Moscow Metro is just spectacular. I actually visited Moscow myself quite recently and wrote a post about my top 7 stations, please check it out and let me know what you think! :)

http://www.arwtravels.com/blog/moscow-metro-top-7-stations-you-cant-miss

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Moscow Metro, MCC and Aeroexpress trains have free Wi-Fi

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The Moscow Metro Museum of Art: 10 Must-See Stations

There are few times one can claim having been on the subway all afternoon and loving it, but the Moscow Metro provides just that opportunity.  While many cities boast famous public transport systems—New York’s subway, London’s underground, San Salvador’s chicken buses—few warrant hours of exploration.  Moscow is different: Take one ride on the Metro, and you’ll find out that this network of railways can be so much more than point A to B drudgery.

The Metro began operating in 1935 with just thirteen stations, covering less than seven miles, but it has since grown into the world’s third busiest transit system ( Tokyo is first ), spanning about 200 miles and offering over 180 stops along the way.  The construction of the Metro began under Joseph Stalin’s command, and being one of the USSR’s most ambitious building projects, the iron-fisted leader instructed designers to create a place full of svet (radiance) and svetloe budushchee (a radiant future), a palace for the people and a tribute to the Mother nation.

Consequently, the Metro is among the most memorable attractions in Moscow.  The stations provide a unique collection of public art, comparable to anything the city’s galleries have to offer and providing a sense of the Soviet era, which is absent from the State National History Museum.  Even better, touring the Metro delivers palpable, experiential moments, which many of us don’t get standing in front of painting or a case of coins.

Though tours are available , discovering the Moscow Metro on your own provides a much more comprehensive, truer experience, something much less sterile than following a guide.  What better place is there to see the “real” Moscow than on mass transit: A few hours will expose you to characters and caricatures you’ll be hard-pressed to find dining near the Bolshoi Theater.  You become part of the attraction, hear it in the screech of the train, feel it as hurried commuters brush by: The Metro sucks you beneath the city and churns you into the mix.

With the recommendations of our born-and-bred Muscovite students, my wife Emma and I have just taken a self-guided tour of what some locals consider the top ten stations of the Moscow Metro. What most satisfied me about our Metro tour was the sense of adventure .  I loved following our route on the maps of the wagon walls as we circled the city, plotting out the course to the subsequent stops; having the weird sensation of being underground for nearly four hours; and discovering the next cavern of treasures, playing Indiana Jones for the afternoon, piecing together fragments of Russia’s mysterious history.  It’s the ultimate interactive museum.

Top Ten Stations (In order of appearance)

Kievskaya station.

Kievskaya Station went public in March of 1937, the rails between it and Park Kultury Station being the first to cross the Moscow River.  Kievskaya is full of mosaics depicting aristocratic scenes of Russian life, with great cameo appearances by Lenin, Trotsky, and Stalin.  Each work has a Cyrillic title/explanation etched in the marble beneath it; however, if your Russian is rusty, you can just appreciate seeing familiar revolutionary dates like 1905 ( the Russian Revolution ) and 1917 ( the October Revolution ).

Mayakovskaya Station

Mayakovskaya Station ranks in my top three most notable Metro stations. Mayakovskaya just feels right, done Art Deco but no sense of gaudiness or pretention.  The arches are adorned with rounded chrome piping and create feeling of being in a jukebox, but the roof’s expansive mosaics of the sky are the real showstopper.  Subjects cleverly range from looking up at a high jumper, workers atop a building, spires of Orthodox cathedrals, to nimble aircraft humming by, a fleet of prop planes spelling out CCCP in the bluest of skies.

Novoslobodskaya Station

Novoslobodskaya is the Metro’s unique stained glass station.  Each column has its own distinctive panels of colorful glass, most of them with a floral theme, some of them capturing the odd sailor, musician, artist, gardener, or stenographer in action.  The glass is framed in Art Deco metalwork, and there is the lovely aspect of discovering panels in the less frequented haunches of the hall (on the trackside, between the incoming staircases).  Novosblod is, I’ve been told, the favorite amongst out-of-town visitors.

Komsomolskaya Station

Komsomolskaya Station is one of palatial grandeur.  It seems both magnificent and obligatory, like the presidential palace of a colonial city.  The yellow ceiling has leafy, white concrete garland and a series of golden military mosaics accenting the tile mosaics of glorified Russian life.  Switching lines here, the hallway has an Alice-in-Wonderland feel, impossibly long with decorative tile walls, culminating in a very old station left in a remarkable state of disrepair, offering a really tangible glimpse behind the palace walls.

Dostoevskaya Station

Dostoevskaya is a tribute to the late, great hero of Russian literature .  The station at first glance seems bare and unimpressive, a stark marble platform without a whiff of reassembled chips of tile.  However, two columns have eerie stone inlay collages of scenes from Dostoevsky’s work, including The Idiot , The Brothers Karamazov , and Crime and Punishment.   Then, standing at the center of the platform, the marble creates a kaleidoscope of reflections.  At the entrance, there is a large, inlay portrait of the author.

Chkalovskaya Station

Chkalovskaya does space Art Deco style (yet again).  Chrome borders all.  Passageways with curvy overhangs create the illusion of walking through the belly of a chic, new-age spacecraft.  There are two (kos)mosaics, one at each end, with planetary subjects.  Transferring here brings you above ground, where some rather elaborate metalwork is on display.  By name similarity only, I’d expected Komsolskaya Station to deliver some kosmonaut décor; instead, it was Chkalovskaya that took us up to the space station.

Elektrozavodskaya Station

Elektrozavodskaya is full of marble reliefs of workers, men and women, laboring through the different stages of industry.  The superhuman figures are round with muscles, Hollywood fit, and seemingly undeterred by each Herculean task they respectively perform.  The station is chocked with brass, from hammer and sickle light fixtures to beautiful, angular framework up the innards of the columns.  The station’s art pieces are less clever or extravagant than others, but identifying the different stages of industry is entertaining.

Baumanskaya Statio

Baumanskaya Station is the only stop that wasn’t suggested by the students.  Pulling in, the network of statues was just too enticing: Out of half-circle depressions in the platform’s columns, the USSR’s proud and powerful labor force again flaunts its success.  Pilots, blacksmiths, politicians, and artists have all congregated, posing amongst more Art Deco framing.  At the far end, a massive Soviet flag dons the face of Lenin and banners for ’05, ’17, and ‘45.  Standing in front of the flag, you can play with the echoing roof.

Ploshchad Revolutsii Station

Novokuznetskaya Station

Novokuznetskaya Station finishes off this tour, more or less, where it started: beautiful mosaics.  This station recalls the skyward-facing pieces from Mayakovskaya (Station #2), only with a little larger pictures in a more cramped, very trafficked area.  Due to a line of street lamps in the center of the platform, it has the atmosphere of a bustling market.  The more inventive sky scenes include a man on a ladder, women picking fruit, and a tank-dozer being craned in.  The station’s also has a handsome black-and-white stone mural.

Here is a map and a brief description of our route:

Start at (1)Kievskaya on the “ring line” (look for the squares at the bottom of the platform signs to help you navigate—the ring line is #5, brown line) and go north to Belorusskaya, make a quick switch to the Dark Green/#2 line, and go south one stop to (2)Mayakovskaya.  Backtrack to the ring line—Brown/#5—and continue north, getting off at (3)Novosblodskaya and (4)Komsolskaya.  At Komsolskaya Station, transfer to the Red/#1 line, go south for two stops to Chistye Prudy, and get on the Light Green/#10 line going north.  Take a look at (5)Dostoevskaya Station on the northern segment of Light Green/#10 line then change directions and head south to (6)Chkalovskaya, which offers a transfer to the Dark Blue/#3 line, going west, away from the city center.  Have a look (7)Elektroskaya Station before backtracking into the center of Moscow, stopping off at (8)Baumskaya, getting off the Dark Blue/#3 line at (9)Ploschad Revolyutsii.  Change to the Dark Green/#2 line and go south one stop to see (10)Novokuznetskaya Station.

Check out our new Moscow Indie Travel Guide , book a flight to Moscow and read 10 Bars with Views Worth Blowing the Budget For

Jonathon Engels, formerly a patron saint of misadventure, has been stumbling his way across cultural borders since 2005 and is currently volunteering in the mountains outside of Antigua, Guatemala.  For more of his work, visit his website and blog .

Photo credits:   SergeyRod , all others courtesy of the author and may not be used without permission

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Great balls of fire: Watch incredible CCTV footage of industrial furnace EXPLOSION that showers workers with wave of molten steel sparks

Russian blast sees three bombarded with carpet of molten steel

• 10:14, 14 Aug 2012
• Updated 10:16, 14 Aug 2012

CCTV footage showing an industrial furnace showering workers with molten metal is shocking viewers of a video-sharing website.

Believed to have occurred at one of the metallurgy manufacturing plant in the Russian city Elektrostal, east of Moscow, the undated video shows three men sprayed with a wave of sparks in the intensive blast.

With no stories filed by any international news agency, the fate of the workers remains unknown. Several figures can be seen walking about following the explosion.

Commenters on Live Leak, the site to which the video uploaded, have speculated that the incident occurred after water – used to cool the machinery’s copper induction coil – mixed with electricity and the molten steek.

Another user said: “Reminds me of the time a tractor battery blew up on us and spewed battery acid all over the place... we were just as dumbfounded as these guys were. No injuries to us, but ruined clothing for sure.”

MORE ON CCTV KABOOM viral Miracle escapes viral Viral

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