Russian underground passages or tunnels

[Rachel Adams]

Hello.

There is a Russian word to refer to underground passages that big cities have. They are like underground tunnels. What do you call them in English? It's not "a subway" or "underground" for sure. We use a different word for that.

 

[Rachel Adams]

What are these things used for?

It's aim is to reduce the number of the pedestrians outside.

 

[PeterCW]

In BrE a tunnel to allow pedestrians to cross a street is techically a "pedestrian subway" or "underpass" but colloquially usually just a "subway".

The pedestrian tunnels within an underground railway station are normally called "passages".

Terms used will vary according to the purpose and location of the tunnel.

 

[SoothingDave]

Are you talking about to cross busy streets or a network of underground tunnels to keep people out of the cold/snow/rain?

 

[Yankee]

I don't know of any extended underground passageways in my section of the U.S. for pedestrians (and maybe that's the term). But for vehicles you would see/hear "underpass" for short passage or "tunnel" for longer length.

 

[Rachel Adams]

Are you talking about to cross busy streets or a network of underground tunnels to keep people out of the cold/snow/rain?

Yes, exactly!

 

[emsr2d2]

Are you talking about to cross busy streets or a network of underground tunnels to keep people out of the cold/snow/rain?

Yes, exactly!

That was an either/or question. Which are you talking about?

 

[Rachel Adams]

That was an either/or question. Which are you talking about?

Both. But especially about the first one.

 

[emsr2d2]

In the UK, a pedestrian tunnel under a road is an underpass or a subway.

 

[Rachel Adams]

In the UK, a pedestrian tunnel under a road is an underpass or a subway.

And its purpose is the same as of those passeges in big Russian cities. Right?

 

[emsr2d2]

They're purely to allow pedestrians to get from one side of a road to the other without having to negotiate traffic. They have nothing to do with keeping people out of unpleasant weather.

 

[GoesStation]

And its purpose is the same as of those passeges in big Russian cities. Right?

In British English, a subway is an underground passage pedestrians use to safely cross a street. In American English it's an urban underground railroad.

 

[Rachel Adams]

In British English, a subway is an underground passage pedestrians use to safely cross a street. In American English it's an urban underground railroad.

Doesn't British English use "the underground" or is it called "The Tube"? I am talking about an underground railroad.

 

[emsr2d2]

We call the underground railway in London "The Underground" or "The Tube".
I believe underground railways in the US are called "the subway".
In much of Europe, they're called "the Metro".

Notwithstanding all of that, the pedestrian tunnels under a road are still called either an underpass or a subway in the UK.

 

[GoesStation]

I believe underground railways in the US are called "the subway".

The name varies by location. In New York and Boston, it's the "subway". In San Francisco, the city system is the "subway" and the regional system is the "BART" (for "Bay Area Rapid Transit"). In Washington, DC it's the "Metro". Other American cities have a similar variety of names.

However, the generic American term for underground urban train systems is "subway". For example:

"What do you call the subway in Washington?"
"The Metro."