Metro de Madrid was established 90 years ago in order to facilitate the mobility of Madrid residents. The population of Madrid at that time was 600,000. Today, 90 years after its inauguration, every day Metro conveys over two and a half million passengers around its 284-kilometre network and its 294 stations. Mobility within the Autonomous Community of Madrid is increasingly safer, faster and more efficient.
Metro de Madrid, 90 years at the service of the community
Metro de Madrid, 90 years at the service of the community
The first Metro line, inaugurated 90 years ago, had 8 stations and a length of just four kilometres. Since then, Madrid has changed a lot and the demographic and economic growth undergone by the Autonomous Community of Madrid in recent times has called for a parallel effort to bring the Metro system to the places where this growth has taken Madrid residents. In this way, it now reaches twelve municipalities in the Region, and 76.7% of the population of the Autonomous Community of Madrid has a Metro station within 600 metres of their home.
All this has become possible thanks to the fact that, after successive expansion plans executed as of 1995, there has been an increase from 164 stations and a 120-km network, to 294 stations and a 284-kilometre network, figures that make Metro de Madrid the third-ranking network in the world in the number of stations, behind the New York and Paris subways, and the fourth in extension, behind the New York, London and Moscow underground systems.
The effort devoted by the authorities to endow Metro de Madrid with the maximum transport capacity has meant that a large proportion of its network is heavy metro, which also makes Metro de Madrid the top-ranking underground system in the world insofar as tunnel length is concerned.
In the course of the last few years a considerable effort has been made to endow the network with accessibility measures facilitating access to the facilities. Metro de Madrid is now the network that is equipped with the largest number of escalators (1619 units), followed a long way behind by the underground systems of Moscow (598) and Paris (504).
Similarly, it is number one in the number of lifts installed in the network (458), followed by the New York (196) and London (150) underground systems, which makes Metro de Madrid the most accessible metropolitan transport network in the world.
Metro de Madrid, 90 years at the service of the community
COMPARATIVE TABLE OF THE
MOST IMPORTANT SYSTEMS IN THE WORLD
System Km
System Tunnel Km
Stations
Escalators
Lifts
New York
London
Inclusive of quadruple tracks in some cases
The largest expansion undergone by an Underground system
Metro de Madrid, 90 years at the service of the community
The origins
At half past three in the afternoon of 17 October 1919, Alfonso XIII inaugurated the first section of what is now the Madrid Metro system at Cuatro Caminos station.
The North-South Line, as it was called then, was four kilometres long and had eight stations: Puerta del Sol, Red de San Luis (Gran Vía), Hospicio (Tribunal), Bilbao, Chamberí (now called Museo), Martínez Campos (Iglesia), Ríos Rosas and Cuatro Caminos.
The public opening took place on 31 October 1919. On this first day the new transport system was used by 56,200 passengers. Madrid residents, who had made the same journey hitherto by tram, with a travelling time of just over half an hour, were able to verify that they could do the same trip in barely ten minutes, including stops.
The first lines: 1920-1926
Metro made such a successful start that in the course of the first year it was used by 14 million passengers. At the suggestion of the City Council, the return ticket was introduced in 1924 and it remained in force for several decades, with a rate of use that was extremely high.
In this period Metro multiplied its length by four, going from 3.5 to 14.6 km.
Metro continues growing: 1927-1935
The expansion of the system called for new equipment. The increase in rolling stock made it necessary to have a larger area for Workshops and Car Sheds at Cuatro Caminos.
The Civil War: 1936-1939
During the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939) the Metro remained open and was regularly used as a shelter during shelling. In addition, a few weeks after the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War, on 9 August 1936, the first section of Line 3 was opened between Sol and Embajadores, but five days later traffic on this branch came to a halt because the Estación del Norte area was practically in the war zone, so there were hardly any passengers then.
In the next three years, Franco’s troops put the city of Madrid under siege and the Metro started working again almost without any problem.
Throughout the siege Metro cars carried both coffins and bodies to the cemeteries located in the East. The short Goya–Diego de León Line, in turn, was closed and used as an arsenal. On 10 January 1938 a powerful explosion took place there, which caused an unknown number of victims.
After Madrid was taken on 28 March 1939 by the National army, the Socialist and Communist employees of Metro were dismissed and their place was taken by sympathisers with the Nationalist cause. Some stations changed their name under the influence of the Falangist regime.
Culmination of the initial projects: 1940-1954
The Company’s institutional situation continued to be that of a private company. The Central Government, however, reserved the right to lay down the internal pay and conditions policy as well as the pricing system, which represented an economic imbalance for Metro.
The State builds the infrastructure: 1955-1966
As of 1955 Metro financing was distributed in such a way that the State was responsible for building the infrastructure and the Company for providing the equipment and rolling stock and for operation. The high saturation rate borne by Line 1 made it foreseeable that technical steps would be taken to increase transport capacity and enlarge platform length from 60 to 90 metros in order to permit the running of 6-car trains. The Transport Plan was implemented not only with the commissioning of new sections that extended the existing lines, but also with the construction of the new Line 5. Ferrocarril Suburbano de Carabanchel was also inaugurated, although its operation was assigned to Metro in 1960.
Expansion Plan: 1967-1977
In 1967 the Government approved an Expansion Plan, which was reviewed in 1971 and carried out in 1974. It envisaged the building of new lines, which now correspond to Lines 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 (the last only partly).
The Intervention Period: 1978-1985
The bulk of the new sections came into service in the early eighties. In this way, the length of the system increased by half in the period 1979-1983. In that year, the Metro system had an overall length of more than 100 kilometres, if we take into account the line endpoints for train parking.
Public ownership: Regional Transport Consortium 1986-1994
On 24 March 1986 the Madrid City Council and the Autonomous Community assumed ownership for Compañía Metropolitano de Madrid, and the Intervention Council, set up in 1978, was replaced by the newly appointed Board of Directors.
Both institutions temporarily transferred their Metro shares to the Madrid Regional Transport Consortium (CRT). This Body assumed responsibility for planning and designing the transport system. As of 1990, under the 'Plan of Action for Madrid Public Transport', provisions included the investments required in new infrastructure: Extension of Line 1 from Portazgo to Miguel Hernández, commissioned in April 1994, and closing of the circle Line 6 with the Laguna-Ciudad Universitaria section.
The main expansion plans: 1995-2003
Between 1995 and 2003 two expansion plans were implemented that enabled Metro to extend its network by almost 150 new kilometres. The first of the plans, carried out between 1995-1999, consisted of designing and building 56 new kilometres of Metro with 38 stations. The Government of the Autonomous Community of Madrid considered that the Metro should reach eight outlying districts as well as areas of great importance to Madrid and the rest of Spain: the Juan Carlos I Trade Fair Ground and Barajas International Airport, by means of the extension of the new Line 8.
The most important feature and highlight of the Second Expansion Plan was the inauguration on 11 April 2003 of 47 additional kilometres to the Metro system. This enlargement comprised the extension of Line 10 to Puerta del Sur, in Alcorcón, as well as linking-up of the main towns in the south of Madrid (Móstoles, Fuenlabrada, Getafe, Leganés and Alcorcón) by means of the new Metrosur circle line.
The largest Metro expansion: 2003-2007
During the legislature 2003-2007 the Autonomous Community of Madrid carried out the largest Metro expansion in history, which consisted of the construction of 80 new kilometres of conventional Metro and Light Metro, involving a total of 90 new stations. The bounds of the action plans took the Metro to those municipal districts that did not have this means of transport at their disposal. Specifically, the residents of Villaverde, La Elipa, Hortaleza, Pinar de Chamartín, Alameda de Osuna, Montecarmelo and Carabanchel Alto were the ones to benefit from this expansion scheme. In addition, a series of jobs included in this Expansion Plan forestalled the demands of the new urban developments both in the north of the city (Sanchinarro and Las Tablas, in the Light Metro modality) and in the south (Ensanche de Vallecas).
The main municipalities in the north and east of the Region, such as Alcobendas, San Sebastián de los Reyes, San Fernando, Coslada, benefited from the expansion.
In the last twelve years the Metro de Madrid network has undergone unprecedented growth, almost tripling its length and doubling the number of stations.
Looking to the future: 2007-2011
The Regional Government is forging ahead with the work that it has been carrying out over the last few years in order to place at the disposal of all Madrid residents a quality public transport system that will meet the mobility requirements of such a dynamic region as Madrid.
Amongst the new action plans in the area of conventional Metro, in the current legislature the Autonomous Community of Madrid will undertake the following projects:
-Extension of Line 11 from La Peseta to Barrio de la Fortuna in Leganés
-Extension of Line 2 from La Elipa to Las Rosas
-Extension of Line 9 from Herrera Oria to Mirasierra
-New car sheds for Line 2
Metro de Madrid, 90 years at the service of the community
Metro de Madrid, the most innovative Underground in the world
Metro de Madrid, 90 years at the service of the community
90 years ago Madrid underwent its own particular revolution in urban transport: the industrial revolution had started up the machinery of social change. The building of the Underground in 1919 placed our city on a par with the great metropolises that already possessed this fast and efficient transport system (London -1863, Budapest -1896, Paris -1900 and Berlin -1902).
The original design envisaged the construction of 4 lines which would serve the inner city as well as a few surrounding districts. The foreseen length was 14 kilometres. The trains, which were made up of 5 cars with a capacity for 250 people, would run at a speed of 25 km/h. Today Metro de Madrid has a network of 294 kilometres, its current trains can carry over 800 people and they can reach a speed of 110 km/h. In addition, they have a high degree of automation and are equipped with modern signalling and safety systems.
This great leap forward has taken many years and, above all, Metro has had to devote a great deal of effort, taking advantage at all times of the latest technology, research and its own inventiveness, something which has made it one of the most innovative Underground systems of all those in existence.
Metro de Madrid is currently working on 38 R+D+i projects aimed at improving the service that the Company offers to over 2.5 million passengers who travel on the underground every day. These projects are denoted for being conducted either independently or in conjunction with other companies and universities.
The most notable ones include international projects of great impact, such as MODURBAN (European transport system), URBAN TRACK (New tram and light metro track system) and other domestic projects or ones carried out specifically by Metro de Madrid, such as the CBTC (Communication-Based Train Control) system, a signalling and train traffic control system that makes it possible to increase passenger carrying capacity, at the implantation stage on Lines 1 and 6. It is also equipped with its own driving simulators, advanced fire protection systems, predictive maintenance in various areas, an auscultation train, and a lot more.
A number of these projects undertaken by Metro de Madrid are exported afterwards to other metro systems round the world. We should single out the development and implementation of rigid catenary, a system patented by Metro de Madrid on a European scale, which consists of a rigid section that sustains the train overhead electrification system contact wire, offering improved performance and a lower installation cost. The multinationals have shown interest in the exploitation rights of this patent in Europe and it has already been implemented in the Santo Domingo metro system. In addition, many of these projects are being conducted in cooperation with other companies and various universities.
Domestic and international acknowledgements
MetroRail 2009 Award as the most innovative Underground system in the world.
MetroRail 2008 Award as the world’s Underground that most improved in 2007.
Manuel Seijas y Lozano Prize for Industrial Innovation for its firm commitment to technology and R+D+i projects and in recognition for its public efforts on behalf of Industrial Engineering.
Prodis 2005 Prize for Accessibility and Integration of the Handicapped, awarded by CERMI in 2005 for the jobs carried out on a pilot test basis at Canal station in the field of Accessibility.