Line 5 of the Beijing Subway (Chinese: 北京地铁5号线; pinyin: běijīng dìtiě wǔhào xiàn) is Beijing's only subway line with an entirely north-south route. Line 5's color is maroon. It entered into operation on October 7, 2007. It runs for 27.6 km (17.1 mi) in a near straight line through the city center (just approximately a kilometer east of the Forbidden City at Dongdan) from Tiantongyuanbei in Changping District to Songjiazhuang in Fengtai District. Though Line 4 and Line 8 also broadly follow north-south routes (and so, in part, do Lines 14 and 13), Line 5 remains the only line to follow an almost entirely straight north-south course. Line 5 is also notable for including three stations in the densely populated northern suburb of Tiantongyuan, as well as providing convenient access to the Temp