MOSCOW, March 1. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin kicked off train service on the Big Circle Line of the Moscow subway via a video link on Wednesday.

The ceremony was attended in person by Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin. The mayor asked Putin to sign a schematic of the subway that now includes the new line. The president said, "With pleasure," before signing and showing the result to the camera.

Sobyanin then asked the president for permission to put the line into operation.

"What do you think the answer will be?" Putin said with a smile, and then commanded, "Permission given. God speed!"

Sobyanin then repeated the command to workers.

New stations

The last nine stations were put in operation to complete the new circle line. They are Maryina Roshcha, Rizhskaya, Sokolniki, Tekstilshchiki, Pechatniki, Nagatinsky Zaton, Klenovy Boulevard, Kashirskaya and Varshavskaya. The Big Circle Line will improve transportation for 34 districts in Moscow with a population of 3.3 mln people and considerably reduce the burden on other subway lines.

The Big Circle Line project ranks as Russia’s biggest subway building projects in recent decades and also one of the world’s largest ones. The line spans 70 kilometers and numbers 31 stations.