Background and Purpose <p>Accelerated urbanization has intensified vibration pollution from urban rail transit systems, creating an urgent need for effective mitigation solutions. Traditional vibration isolation technologies are often constrained by narrow frequency bands, failing to address the low-frequency-dominant vibrations from subway operations. This paper proposes a novel metamaterial vibration isolation wall (NMW) based on local resonance theory to tackle this critical challenge.</p> Methods <p>This article proposes a new type of metamaterial vibration isolation wall (NMW) based on the local resonance theory, and analyzes its bandgap characteristics by using the finite element method (FEM) and the plane wave expansion (PWE)method. A finite element model of a subway tunnel incorporating the NMW was developed using ABAQUS to evaluate its vibration damping performance. The effects of key parameters, including burial depth and wall thickness, were systematically investigated.</p> Results and Conclusion <p>Results demonstrate that the NMW exhibits multiple bandgaps within the low-frequency range, effectively attenuating subway-induced vibrations. Deeper burial depths and greater wall thickness were found to significantly enhance vibration isolation. By optimizing the geometric parameters of the NMW, the performance can be substantially improved, demonstrating its strong potential for practical engineering applications.</p>