Metro de Madrid

During the 2003/2007 legislative term, the Community of Madrid has carried out the largest expansion plan in the Metro's history. with the construction of 59.08 km of conventional underground lines, 27.77 km of Light Railway lines, and 81 stations.

The scope of the actions, as can be seen in the plan showing the overall project, has taken the Metro to those districts in the municipality that lacked this form of transport (specifically, Villaverde, La Elipa, Hortaleza, Pinar de Chamartín, Alameda de Osuna, Montecarmelo and Carabanchel Alto), through the expansion of existing lines or by creating new stations on already operating lines.

Furthermore, a series of works included in this Expansion Plan have been put forward due to the demands of new city developments, both in the north of the capital (Sanchinarro and Las Tablas, for Light Railway) and in the south (Ensanche de Vallecas).

Furthermore, the Metropolitan Network has now been extended beyond the city limits of Madrid, through MetroNorte, which takes the Metro to the municipalities of Alcobendas and San Sebastian de los Reyes; MetroEste, which does likewise towards the Corredor de Henares, and San Fernando and Coslada, and the new Light Railway, which takes the lines to Pozuelo de Alarcón and Boadilla del Monte, converting the Underground into a network with regional scope.

An innovative feature worthy of mention in the present Metro de Madrid Expansion Plan is the incorporation of the Light Railway, a means of transport that is very popular in other European countries; it is a flexible, convenient and accessible system that is extremely user-friendly.

The Light Railway currently reaches the new city development areas of Sanchinarro and Las Tablas, in the north of Madrid; it also links the capital with the municipalities of Boadilla del Monte and Pozuelo de Alarcón, in the western area of the Community of Madrid.

Another important aspect is the connection of Metro's Line 8 to the new T4 airport terminal, as a Metro franchise, which provides a fast rail link to the business centre of Madrid.

In the last twelve years, Metro de Madrid has grown in an unprecedented fashion, almost tripling the length of its network and doubling the number of stations.

The 2003-2007 Metro de Madrid Expansion Plan for the Community of Madrid constitutes an extremely significant programme which diversifies the network, providing it with a backbone structure and extending it, on many occasions, beyond the municipal boundaries. With its implementation, it represents a qualitative step forward that greatly improves mobility within the city and the quality of life within the region, which advances day by day towards higher levels of well-being.

* Seven of the 81 stations are interchanges

** 59.08 km of Underground and 27.77 km of Light Railway