Avtovo (Saint Petersburg Metro)

Avtovo (Russian: А́втово) is a station on the Kirovsko-Vyborgskaya Line of the Saint Petersburg Metro.[1] Designed by architect Yevgenii Levinson, it opened as part of the first Leningrad Metro line on November 15, 1955.[2] In 2014, The Guardian included it on the list of 12 most beautiful metro stations in the world.[3]

Avtovo
Saint Petersburg Metro station
Station Hall
Location	Kirovsky District Saint Petersburg Russia
Coordinates	59°52′02.37″N 30°15′40.87″E
Operated by	Saint Petersburg Metro
Line(s)	Kirovsko–Vyborgskaya Line
Platforms	1 (Island platform)
Tracks	2
Construction
Structure type	Underground
Depth	12 m (39 ft)
History
Opened	November 15, 1955
Electrified	Third rail
Services
Preceding station Saint Petersburg Metro Following station Kirovsky Zavod towards Devyatkino Line 1 Leninsky Prospekt towards Prospekt Veteranov Former services Kirovsky Zavod towards Devyatkino Line 1 1966–1977 Dachnoye Terminus

Avtovo's unique and highly ornate design features columns faced with ornamental glass manufactured at the Lomonosov factory.[2] Although the original plan envisaged using glass on all of the columns in the station, white marble was substituted on some due to time constraints. This marble was supposed to be temporary, but it has never been replaced. The walls are faced with white marble and adorned on the north side by a row of ornamental ventilation grilles. At the end of the platform a mosaic by V.A. Voronetskiy and A.K. Sokolov commemorates the Leningrad Blockade (1941-1944) during the Second World War.

Unlike the other stations on the first line, Avtovo is a shallow-level station, constructed using the cut and cover method. It belongs to the shallow column class of underground stations.

Avtovo has as its entrance vestibule a large Neoclassical building with a domed cupola, located on the east side of Prospekt Stachek.