阿尔及利亚首都正式开通地铁

Africa's second metro¹ system has opened - in the Algerian capital, Algiers.

非洲第二条地铁在阿尔及利亚首都阿尔及尔开通。

Many Algerians have complained that the cost of the metro is too high
Construction began 28 years ago, but was halted - firstly because of an oil crisis in the 1980s and later during a decade of civil unrest.

The metro（地铁，大都市） was opened by President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, at a ceremony attended by hundreds of residents keen to try out the new transport system.

The 6.5km (4 miles) of track has 10 stops, and connects Algiers' Central Post Office to the suburb of Kouba.

Work began on the project back in the early 1980s, but was interrupted when a collapse² in worldwide oil and gas prices sent Algeria's economy into free fall.

The country is the world's fourth largest exporter of natural gas.

In the 1990s, the country descended³ into violence, in which government forces fought an Islamist insurgency⁴. As many as quarter of a million people lost their lives.

The metro cost an estimated 90bn dinars ($1.2bn) to build.

A single journey will cost 50 dinars ($0.67; 0.50 euros) - a price many Algerians have complained is too high.