Barcelona Metro

Barcelona Metro
Info
Locale	Barcelona, Catalonia
Transit type	Rapid transit
Number of lines	11
Number of stations	165 (List)[citation needed]
Operation
Began operation	1924
Operator(s)	Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona and Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya
Technical

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, Catalan: [ˈmɛtɾu ðə βərsəˈɫonə], Spanish: [ˈmetɾo ðe βarθeˈlona]), part of the public transportation system of Barcelona, Catalonia, is an extensive network of electrified railways that run underground in central Barcelona and above ground into the city's suburbs. Since July 31, 2010, Barcelona Metro system consists of 11 lines with 165 stations and 125 km in total. In 2002 ATM announced that two additional lines would built in the near future, L12 and L13.^[3] There have been 3 driverless lines since 2009: Line 11, Line 9 and Line 10, in chronological order.

History

The Barcelona Metro was founded in 1924 with the construction of the Gran Metro between Lesseps and the Plaça de Catalunya, part of the modern Line 3. Two years later the Metro Transversal (now part of Line 1) 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 Universal Exhibition.

Today the network consists of ten 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 subsurface.

Layout

Network map

The metro network proper, operated by TMB, consists of eight lines, numbered L1 to L5 and L9 to L11, and distinguished on network maps by different colours. FGC lines are numbered L6, L7 and L8. None of the Barcelona Metro lines 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 Number	Termini	Operator	Current Length	Approved Length	Current Stations	Approved Stations	Year of Opening
	Hospital de Bellvitge–Fondo	TMB	20.700 km	29.758 km	29	38	1929
	Paral·lel–Badalona Pompeu Fabra	TMB	13.700 km	18.466 km	18	34	1959
	Zona Universitària–Trinitat Nova	TMB	18.400 km	20.024 km	26	36	1924
	Trinitat Nova–La Pau	TMB	16.700 km	18.916 km	22	26	1926
	Cornellà Centre–Vall d'Hebron	TMB	18.900 km	19.168 km	26	27	1959
	Pl. Catalunya–Reina Elisenda	FGC	5.384 km	8.198 km	9	12	1863
	Pl. Catalunya–Av. Tibidabo	FGC	4.634 km	4.634 km	7	7	1954
	Pl. Espanya–Molí Nou-Ciutat Cooperativa	FGC	11.266 km	11.266 km	11	11	1983
	La Sagrera–Can Zam	TMB	3.9 km	47.9 km	8	52	2009
	La Sagrera–Gorg	TMB			6		2010
	Trinitat Nova–Can Cuiàs	TMB	2.109 km		5		2003
	Parc de Montjuïc–Paral·lel	TMB	0.758 km		2		1928

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

Detalls of the capacity of trains.

Construction work is taking place currently on L9/L10, which will run from Badalona and Santa Coloma 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 one of the longest automated metro lines in Europe, at 47.8 kilometres (29.7 mi), and will have 55 stations. As of June 2010^[update], eleven stations are open. The project was approved in 2000^[4] but has been challenged by some technical difficulties and some of their sections are pending further geological analysis.

Proposed lines

Main article: List of proposed Barcelona Metro 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):

• Morera
• Canyet
• Can Ruti

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.^[5][6][7]

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.^[8]

Cards and pricing

In addition to the one way ticket (€1.40 as of September 2010^[update][9] 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:

• T10
• T50/30–50 journeys made in 30 consecutive days from the first use
• T Familiar (70/30)
• T Mes
• T Trimestre
• T Dia
• T Jove

All of the metro stations are within fare zone 1. Tariffs (as of 2010^[10][11]), including all zones, are the following:

	T 10	T Jove	T 50/30	T Mes	T Dia	T Trimestre	T Familiar (70/30)	T 12 for children
Fare zone 1	€7.95	€115.00	€32.40	€49.30	€6.00	€135.50	€46.75	€35.00
Fare zone 2	€15.85	€166.50	€54.35	€71.10	€9.40	€196.50	€65.85
Fare zone 3	€21.60	€223.50	€76.30	€96.10	€11.85	€265.50	€90.35
Fare zone 4	€27.75	€268.50	€94.90	€114.00	€13.35	€316.00	€110.50
Fare zone 5	€31.90	€305.50	€112.00	€131.00	€15.15	€360.00	€127.00
Fare zone 6	€33.90	€317.00	€124.50	€140.00	€16.95	€373.00	€137.00

Stations

Elevators in Llefià station.

Llefià

Main article: List of Barcelona metro stations

As of mid 2007, there are currently 150 operational stations in the Barcelona Metro, served by the 9 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, as opposed to other subway networks as the London Underground, mostly consisting of an access with stairs, escalators and sometimes an elevator. 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 inside stations. Below ground their decoration is remarkably sober, with the exception of a few stations.

Disused stations

Main article: Disused Barcelona metro stations

A number of stations in the network have been closed, were never inaugurated, or a 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 many stations remain without access. 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. See: Central ATM network chart, General ATM network chart.

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 subway extensions of its network in the large cities of Sabadell and Terrassa respectively.

See also

Barcelona Metro topics

• List of Barcelona metro stations
• Disused Barcelona metro stations
• Autoritat del Transport Metropolità
• Spanish solution, also known as Barcelona solution

Rapid transit in Barcelona

• Transport in Barcelona
• List of railway stations in Barcelona
• RENFE and FGC-operated Rodalies Barcelona
• List of Rodalies Barcelona railway stations
• FGC suburban lines
• Trambaix and Trambesòs
• Tramvia blau
• List of tram stations in Barcelona
• Funicular de Montjuïc
• Funicular de Vallvidrera

Other metro systems in Spain

• Metro Bilbao
• Madrid Metro
• Palma de Mallorca Metro
• Seville Metro
• Valencia Metro
• Málaga Metro
• List of metro systems

References

1. ^ "TMB: Basic information". TMB. http://www.tmb.net/en_US/tmb/queestmb/dadesbasiques.jsp. Retrieved 1 February 2010. —length of TMB lines
2. ^ "Barcelona Metro". UrbanRail.net. http://www.urbanrail.net/eu/es/bcn/barcelona.htm. Retrieved 17 July 2011. —length of FCG lines
3. ^ http://people.reed.edu/~reyn/metrobcn.pdf
4. ^ http://people.reed.edu/~reyn/Linia9.pdf
5. ^ http://www.transport.cat/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=10699&start=0
6. ^ http://www.montcada.eu/the-news/noticias-mirame/863-una-l%C3%ADnia-de-fgc-a-trav%C3%A9s-del-t%C3%BAnel-d%5C%27horta-i-el-tramvia,-entre-els-projectes-inclosos-al-pla-d%5C%27infraestructures.html
7. ^ http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=455671&page=405
8. ^ http://www.elperiodico.com/default.asp?idpublicacio_PK=46&idioma=CAS&idnoticia_PK=564816&idseccio_PK=1022
9. ^ http://www20.gencat.cat/portal/site/SalaPremsa/menuitem.342fe4355e0205d607d7ed42b0c0e1a0/?vgnextoid=f60f88c0b0549010VgnVCM1000000b0c1e0aRCRD&vgnextchannel=f60f88c0b0549010VgnVCM1000000b0c1e0aRCRD&vgnextfmt=detall&contentid=c383c143d83fd110VgnVCM1000008d0c1e0aRCRD
10. ^ http://www.atm.cat/pdfs_ang/tarifari/siste.pdf
11. ^ http://www.t-12.cat/Publica/T12/Obtener.aspx

External links

• Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona
• Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya
• Barcelona Metro
• CityMayors article on Barcelona Metro
• Barcelona rail network map
• Wefer.com
• A blog
• Barcelona metro map for wheelchair users
• The forum of the Metro de Barcelona. (Traduction in English of Google Traductor