Metro Ligero

The Metro Ligero (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈmetɾo liˈxeɾo]; literally "Light Metro", meaning "Light Rail") is a light rail system serving the Spanish city of Madrid and its surrounding municipalities. It consists of three lines, totalling 27.8 kilometres (17.3 miles) and 37 stations.^[1] The system forms an integral part of the larger Madrid Metro network.

Line ML1 is the only one of the three lines to run entirely within the city of Madrid. It opened on 24 May 2007 and serves the then-new neighbourhoods of Sanchinarro and Las Tablas, in the Fuencarral district in the north of the city.

The line has its southern terminus at Pinar de Chamartín, where it has an interchange with Metro lines 1 and 4, while its northern terminus is at Las Tablas, with a connection to line 10. It also has an interchange with Madrid's Cercanías network at Fuente de la Mora. In total, it has a length of 5.4 kilometres (3.4 miles) and nine stops, of which four are on the surface and five are underground.

Line ML2 has a length of 8.7 kilometres (5.4 miles) and primarily serves the municipality of Pozuelo de Alarcón west of Madrid, linking it with the capital at both ends. It opened on 27 July 2007.

Its two terminus stops are both within Madrid: the southern end is at Colonia Jardín, where it interchanges with Metro Ligero line ML3 and the standard Metro line 10, while in the north it terminates at Estación de Aravaca, which has an out-of-station interchange with Aravaca station on the Madrid Cercanías network. The remaining eleven stops are all in Pozuelo de Alarcón; this gives the line a total of thirteen stops, of which all but three are at ground level.

Like the ML2, line ML3 runs predominantly west of Madrid; it connects the capital with the southern edge of Pozuelo de Alarcón and the municipality of Boadilla del Monte. It opened on the same day as the ML2 and measures 13.7 kilometres (8.5 miles).

The line shares its eastern terminus with the ML2 at Colonia Jardín, which also connects to Metro line 10. Of the fifteen stops on the line, one (Colonia Jardín) is in Madrid, five (between Ciudad de la Imagen and Retamares inclusive) are within Pozuelo de Alarcón, while eight (between Prado del Espino and the eastern terminus at Puerta de Boadilla inclusive) are located in Boadilla del Monte. The two stops at Montepríncipe and Ventorro del Cano, while adjacent to the Montepríncipe urban area of Boadilla del Monte, are actually located within the boundaries of the city of Alcorcón, despite lying over 5 kilometres (3 miles) northwest of Alcorcón's city centre.

The three Metro Ligero lines are operated by a fleet of 70 low-floor Alstom Citadis model 302 trams. Unlike the Madrid Metro, trams operate on the right. The trams have a maximum speed of 70 km/h (43 mph) and are capable of carrying 200 passengers, 54 seated. They are currently assembled into 30-metre (98 ft) train-sets, but are designed so that they can be expanded to 45 metres (148 ft) in the future.

The Citadis 302 model as used on the Metro Ligero is similar to those used by the Parla Tram in the southern suburb of Parla. However, those used on the Metro Ligero are painted red and blue, while the trams used in Parla are lime green.

Car 153 was loaned to Buenos Aires starting in 2008 for use on the Tranvía del Este demonstration tram service at Puerto Madero.

In May 2009, six (165–170) were sold to TransAdelaide for use on the Glenelg line in Adelaide, Australia.^[2][3] In December 2017, Adelaide received a further three (150, 154, 155).^[4][5]

• One of the light rail vehicles at Pinar de Chamartín, on line ML1.
• A tram on Line ML2 at Estación de Aravaca, the outer terminus of the line.
• A tram on Line ML3.
• Interior of the ML1 Citadis 302
• A tram from Pinar de Chamartín arrives at Las Tablas (ML1).

• Madrid Metro
• List of tram and light rail transit systems
• Category:Madrid Metro Ligero stations

• Metro Ligeros de Madrid – official site (archive) (in Spanish)