The Community of Madrid will invest €104 million in the installation of lifts, escalators and other systems that are essential to the operation of the new Metro stations included in the extension of Line 11. Today, the Governing Council was informed of this investment by the Regional Ministry of Housing, Transport and Infrastructure, which is intended to complete the infrastructure for the first section of the future diagonal route in the network, linking Plaza Elíptica and Conde de Casal. 

The contract has been awarded for €104 million, 15% less than the base tender budget, which was set at €123 million. This reduction will enable the optimal use of public resources without compromising the levels of quality, safety and functionality envisaged for this strategic infrastructure project of the regional government. 

Specifically, the project involves the installation of 29 lifts, 60 escalators, a comprehensive fire protection system, overhead catenary systems and all other ancillary works which, due to their technical characteristics, require planning separate from the civil engineering works. 

At the same time, work is progressing on the first section of the Line 11 extension, which will be 6.7 kilometres long. The works have recently reached a new milestone with the connection of the two excavation fronts between the future Comillas and Madrid Río stations, following the arrival of the Mayrit tunnel-boring machine.

This operation, technically known as “cale”, has enabled the completion of the tunnel connecting the two points and passing under the M-30 to link the two banks of the River Manzanares. This represents one of the most significant milestones since work began and coincides with the halfway point of this strategic project for Madrid’s public transport system. 

Since work began on 26 March, Mayrit has excavated 1,116 metres – equivalent to 21 per cent of the planned route – and installed 656 rings that make up the tunnel’s permanent lining. Manufactured in Germany and equipped with state-of-the-art technology, it maintains an average rate of advance of 15 metres a day, occasionally reaching 30 metres a day. 

Meanwhile, work on the Plaza Elíptica–Conde de Casal section is now more than 45% complete. Work on the future Comillas and Madrid Río stations is now around 60% and 58% complete, respectively, whilst work continues on the interchanges at Atocha, Palos de la Frontera and Conde de Casal. 

The extension of Line 11 will turn this infrastructure into the Metro network’s main diagonal route, improving connections between neighbourhoods and new urban developments, reducing trip times and cutting down on the number of changes. 

Furthermore, it will help to relieve congestion on other particularly busy lines, such as Line 6 – known as the Circular Line – which is the busiest line on the entire network, particularly on the section between Plaza Elíptica and Avenida de América. This project, which began in November 2022, is scheduled for completion in 2027.