Guadalajara Metro

Infobox Public transit
name = Guadalajara Metro


imagesize =
locale = Guadalajara, Jalisco
transit_type = light rail (line 1)
rapid transit (line 2)
began_operation = 1989 (line 1)
1994 (line 2)
ended_operation =
system_length = km to mi|24.3|abbr=yes|precision=1
lines = 2
vehicles =
stations = 29
ridership =
track_gauge =
reporting marks =
operator =
owner =

The Guadalajara Metro system, officially known as SITEUR (Sistema de Tren Eléctrico Urbano), Spanish for Urban Electrical Train System, gives service to the municipalities of Guadalajara, Zapopan and Tlaquepaque, in the state of Jalisco, part of the Guadalajara Metropolitan Zone, with 2 lines: line 1, running from North to South, with 19 stations, and line 2, running from downtown to east, with 10 stations.

History

The history of urban trains in Guadalajara dates back to 1800, with the first tramways pulled by mules, going from the Cathedral to the Templo de la Merced.In 1974, several houses and streets rich with history were demolished to make way for the new urban train system. One of such streets was Moro St., which became Federalismo Ave., one of Guadalajara's biggest avenues. Underneath the avenue was built a 6.6 km long tunnel with 7 stations to house the first trolleybus system. Later on, the step towards the current electric train/subway system was taken with Line 1, opened in September 1, 1989. Years later, due to the user saturation and the need for an efficient mass transit system, Line 2 was constructed, and opened in July 1, 1994. Because of the heavy traffic in the city streets and the enormous amounts of users, there's a project that intends to enlarge Line 2 as well as building a third line.German company Siemens supplied the system engineering, signaling and telecommunication, power supply, and a total of 48 vehicles.

Line 1

Line 1 runs from north (North Outer Ring) to South (South Outer Ring), and its stations are:
*Periférico Norte (North Outer Ring).
*Dermatológico.
*Atemajac.
*División del Norte.
*Avila Camacho. (Pending connection with line 3).
*Mezquitan.
*Refugio.
*Juárez. (Connection with line 2).
*Mexicaltzingo.
*Washington.
*Santa Filomena.
*Unidad Deportiva.
*Urdaneta.
*18 de Marzo.
*Isla Raza.
*Patria.
*España.
*Tesoro.
*Periférico Sur (South Outer Ring).

Line 1 carries about 20,307,655 yearly passengers along 15.5 km of railroad.

Line 2

Line 2 runs from downtown (Juárez) to east (Tetlán), and its stations are:
*Juárez (connection with line 1).
*Plaza Universidad.
*San Juan de Dios.
*Belisario Domínguez.
*Oblatos.
*Cristóbal de Oñate.
*San Andrés.
*San Jacinto.
*La Aurora.
*Tetlán (pending expansion of line 2).

Line 2 carries about 2,123,005 yearly passengers along 8.8 km of railroad.

Trains

Trains are electrical, reaching a top speed of 70 km/h (43 mph), move along metallic railroads, and are manned, unlike other subway/L-train systems like the Paris Métropolitain, which are unmanned. Currently there are 40 trains in service, most of Japanese manufacturing.

Future projects

There's a project of creating Line 3, going from north-central Ávila Camacho station to Tesistán, a town in the municipality of Zapopan. There's also another standing project of enlarging Line 2 from Tetlán to Tonalá. Neither of these projects have been carried on due to negligencies, defficiencies and mismanagements of each municipal government.

ee also

*Chicago 'L'
*Guadalajara
*List of rapid transit systems
*Light train
*Monorail
*Rapid transit

External links

* [http://www.siteur.gob.mx/ SITEUR]
* [http://www.rutasjalisco.com Rutas de la ciudad de Guadalajara]
* [http://www.googleearthhacks.com/dlfile6660/Urban-Rail,-Guadalajara,-Mexico.htm Mapa del sistema en Google Earth]