Barcelona Metro

Barcelona Metro
Overview
Native name Metro de Barcelona
Locale Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
Transit type Rapid transit
Number of lines

11 lines (Total)

  • 8 TMB full metro lines
  • 3 FGC lines
Number of stations 156 (TMB metro stations)[1]
180 (Total)
Annual ridership 412,583,000 (2012)[2]
Website Barcelona Metro
Operation
Began operation 1863
Operator(s) TMB & FGC
Number of vehicles 1674
Technical
System length 123.2 km (76.6 mi)
(metro-standards TMB lines)[1]
144.3 km (89.7 mi)
(Total, incl. FGC lines)[1][3]
Track gauge 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in) for
1,668 mm (5 ft 5 21⁄32 in) for
1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) for others
System map
Unofficial map - network as of January 2016
Can Peixauet.
Plaça de Catalunya station (L1)
Universitat station (L1)
Gavarra station (L5)
Ticket vending machines, Sants Estació station.

The Barcelona Metro (Catalan and Spanish: Metro de Barcelona)[lower-alpha 1] is an extensive network of rapid transit electrified railway lines that run mostly underground in central Barcelona and into the city's suburbs. It is part of the larger public transport system of Barcelona, the capital of Catalonia (Spain), with unified fares under the Autoritat del Transport Metropolità (ATM) scheme. As of 2014, the network is operated by two separate companies: Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona (TMB) and Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya (FGC). It is made up of 11 lines, combining the lines owned by the two companies. Two lines, L9 and L10 are being built at present, with both lines having different sections of each opened between 2009 and 2016. They are due to be completed in the near future. In addition to new extensions to several lines, in 2002 ATM announced its plans to build two more lines, L12 and L13.[4] Three lines on the network have opened as automatic train operation/driverless vehicle systems since 2009: Line 11, Line 9 and Line 10, in chronological order.

History

The first rapid transit railway service in Barcelona was founded in 1863 by the private company Ferrocarril de Sarrià a Barcelona ("Railway from Sarrià to Barcelona", now Sarrià is part of the municipality of Barcelona). Later this line evolved in what now is basically the current L6 metro service. This railway system, now part of the Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya company, was inspired by the London Underground naming style having long names for the lines ("Sarrià line", "Balmes line"...) in contrast to the Métropolitain de Paris (from where the word "metro" comes) naming style with numbers that was used for the rest of lines.

Much later, in 1924, the first official "metro" was founded with the construction of the Gran Metro between Lesseps and the Plaça de Catalunya, part of the modern L3. Two years later the Metro Transversal (now part of L1) was built between the Plaça de Catalunya and la Bordeta to link the city centre with the Plaça d'Espanya and Montjuïc, the site of the 1929 Barcelona International Exposition.

Today the network consists of 11 lines managed by 2 different operators: Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona (TMB), which manages the major underground lines; and Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya (FGC, or Catalan Government Railways), which manages three integrated commuter lines running out into the extended metropolitan area. Fares are integrated into Autoritat del Transport Metropolità, a city-wide system that also includes local and regional buses and some regional train services. 98% of its railway tracks are underground.

Lines

The metro network proper, operated by TMB, consists of eight lines, numbered L1 to L5 and L9 to L11 (which are distinguished on network maps by different colours), covering 102.6 kilometres (63.8 mi) of route and 141 stations.[1]

FGC lines are numbered L6, L7 and L8. These lines share track with other FGC commuter rail lines, and so technically don't meet the definition of metro-standards lines.

The Barcelona Metro lines do not have a name of their own but are generally referred to by their colour or by the number and the names of their termini. The Funicular de Montjuïc, a funicular railway, is fare-integrated and listed on maps as part of the metro network, being connected directly to the metro at Paral·lel station.

The lines run as follows:

Line NumberTerminiOperatorCurrent LengthApproved LengthCurrent StationsApproved StationsYear of Opening
Barcelona Metro line 1L1 barcelona.svg
 Hospital de Bellvitge–Fondo TMB 20.700 km 29.758 km 30 38 1929
Barcelona Metro line 2L2 barcelona.svg
 Paral·lel–Badalona Pompeu Fabra TMB 13.700 km 18.466 km 18 34 1995
Barcelona Metro line 3L3 barcelona.svg
 Zona Universitària–Trinitat Nova TMB 18.400 km 20.024 km 26 36 1924
Barcelona Metro line 4L4 barcelona.svg
 Trinitat Nova–La Pau TMB 17.300 km 18.916 km 22 26 1973 (1926)
Barcelona Metro line 5L5 barcelona.svg
 Cornellà Centre–Vall d'Hebron TMB 19.168 km 19.168 km 26 27 1959
Barcelona Metro line 6L6 barcelona.svg
 Pl. Catalunya–Reina Elisenda FGC 5.384 km 8.198 km 9 (3 shared with L7) 12 1976 (1863)
Barcelona Metro line 7L7 barcelona.svg
 Pl. Catalunya–Av. Tibidabo FGC 4.634 km 4.634 km 7 (3 shared with L6) 7 1954 (1863)
Barcelona Metro line 8L8 barcelona.svg
 Pl. Espanya–Molí Nou-Ciutat Cooperativa FGC 11.266 km 11.266 km 11 21 2000 (1912)
Barcelona Metro line 9L9 barcelona.svg
Aeroport T1–Zona Universitària
TMB
19.600 km
47.8 km
15
39
2009
La Sagrera–Can Zam 7.867 km 9 (3 shared with L10)
Barcelona Metro line 10L10 barcelona.svg
 La Sagrera–Gorg TMB 5.57 km 47.8 km 6 (3 shared with L9) 33 2010
Barcelona Metro line 11L11 barcelona.svg
 Trinitat Nova–Can Cuiàs TMB 2.109 km 5 2003
Funicular de MontjuïcFmontjuic.svg
 Parc de Montjuïc–Paral·lel TMB 0.758 km 2 1928
A colour-coded schematic map of the Barcelona Metro network.
Network map

In addition to those, Renfe and FGC trains and the increasingly important Trambaix and Trambesòs routes and stations are displayed on most recent maps, including the info maps in the metro stations, all in a single variety of dark green.

L9 and L10

Details of the capacity of trains.

Construction work is taking place currently on L9/L10, which will run from Badalona and Santa Coloma de Gramenet to the Zona Franca district and El Prat International Airport. The lines, which share a central section between Bon Pastor and Torrassa (L1), will be the longest automated metro line in Europe, at 47.8 kilometres (29.7 mi), and will have 52 stations. The project was approved in 2000[5] but has been challenged by some technical difficulties and some of their sections are pending further geological analysis. The first section of Line 9 that runs between La Sagrera and Can Zam opened in 2009, and by June 2010 eleven new stations on the new Lines L9 and L10 had opened. As of February 2016, the 15-station, 19.6-kilometre (12.2 mi) south section of Line L9 between Zona Universitària and the airport opened.[6]

Proposed lines

Lines L12 and L13 are two current planned additions to the network.

L12 R3

A version of the project for this line, which has been recently given the name of R3, would connect some of the urban area municipalities in Baix Llobregat, such as Esplugues de Llobregat, Sant Joan Despí or Sant Just Desvern, more efficiently than the original idea, bringing them closer to the capital by optimising connections with the bus, tram and train systems. It is due to be completed in 2015 with a budget of close to €870 million.

L13

This line would become, along with L11, one of the two underground light-rail lines fully integrated into the network. As with L11, the intention is to provide access to a hilly area of the metropolitan area: the hospital in Can Ruti in Badalona. The original project includes only three stations (which may not preclude expansion):

New FGC line

A new Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat (FGC) urban line was proposed in late 2010. If completed, it would run from the new Poblenou developments to the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB), in Cerdanyola del Vallès through La Sagrera and the district of Horta-Guinardó. This line doesn't have a number or name yet.[7][8]

Past projects

Besides the current projects above mentioned, from the 1960s onwards some projects were put forward. Among these were a service numbered line VI (following the Roman numeral convention of the network at the time) and a 1980s project for a line crossing Avinguda Diagonal from north-west to south-east, the Diagonal line.[9]

Rolling stock

Cards and pricing

In addition to the one-way ticket (€2.15 as of February 2016[10]) there are a number of other tickets and cards. All of the Autoritat del Transport Metropolità (ATM) transport cards are valid and can be used in the Barcelona Metro. These are:

All of the metro stations are within fare zone 1. Fares can be found on this page.

Stations

TMB (top) and FGC (bottom) logos outside Plaça de Catalunya station.
Elevators in Llefià station.
Llefià

As of mid 2016, there are currently 180 operational stations in the Barcelona Metro, served by the 11 lines in current use, which will increase to 209 when lines L9 and L10 are finally completed. The average distance between stations is 650 metres.

An overwhelming majority of stations in the network lack related buildings or structures aboveground, mostly consisting of an access with stairs, escalators or elevators. The official TMB metro indicator, a red rhombus with a M inside, remains unused by FGC lines, which use their company logo and a different rhombus-shaped logo (actually rather similar to the one used inside the Madrid Metro) inside stations. Below ground their decoration is remarkably sober, with the exception of a few stations.

Disused stations

A number of stations in the network have been closed, were never inaugurated, or have been moved to a nearby location. See the main article for more details.

Accessibility

Accessibility for wheelchairs and for parents with pushchairs is being improved but the metro system is not yet fully accessible. A project of improvements is gradually adding more lifts from street level to ticket office level and then from ticket office level to the platforms, though some stations remain without access. 17 of 180 are not fully accessible as 2016. See Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona for more information on which stations are currently accessible.

Transportation in the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona

The Barcelona Metro is part of a larger transportation network, regulated and fare-integrated by Autoritat del Transport Metropolità.

Among these services, there are two large systems which operate both inside and outside the city limits of Barcelona: the commuter train lines operated by Renfe, amalgamated in the Rodalies Barcelona, or Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya lines which start in the metro lines the company operates (L6, L7 and L8) and which become a fully-fledged railway system which serves most of the metropolitan area: list of FGC lines. FGC is developing Sabadell Metro and Terrassa Metro as extensions of its network in the large cities of Sabadell and Terrassa respectively.

See also

Barcelona Metro topics

Rapid transit in Barcelona

Other metro systems in Spain

Notes

  1. ↑ Local pronunciation:
    • Catalan: [ˈmɛtɾu ðə βərsəˈɫonə]
    • Spanish: [ˈmetɾo ðe βarθeˈlona]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Transport in figures - Basic transport data". TMB. 31 December 2013. Retrieved 9 May 2014. — length of TMB lines.
  2. ↑ "Spanish Statistics National Institute INE". Ine.es. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
  3. ↑ "Europe - Barcelona". UrbanRail.net. Retrieved 9 May 2014.—length of FCG lines
  4. ↑ http://people.reed.edu/~reyn/metrobcn.pdf
  5. ↑ http://people.reed.edu/~reyn/Linia9.pdf
  6. ↑ "Driverless metro reaches Barcelona airport". Railway Gazette International. 12 February 2016. Retrieved 15 February 2016.
  7. ↑ "Transport.cat". transport.cat.
  8. ↑ "Todo Montcada i Reixac". montcada.eu.
  9. ↑ El Periódico de Catalunya. "El Periódico". elperiodico.com.
  10. ↑ "Integrated Fare System - Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona". tmb.cat.

External links

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