Daily ridership 2,000,000 (FY 2010) Began operation January 2, 1983 Number of lines 4 | Founded 8 August 1977 Number of stations 46 | |
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Operator(s) Compañía AnónimaMetro de Caracas Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 ⁄2 in) (standard gauge) Founder Compañía Anónima Metro de Caracas Profiles | ||
The Caracas Metro (Spanish: Metro de Caracas) is a mass rapid transit system serving Caracas, Venezuela. It was constructed and is operated by Compañía Anónima Metro de Caracas, a government-owned company that was founded in 1977 by José González-Lander who headed the project for more than thirty years since the early planning stages in the 1960s. Its motto is "Somos parte de tu vida" (translated as "We are part of your life").
Contents
Lines
The Caracas Metro currently has the following lines in operation:
These lines were built between 1978 and 2006, please note Line 2 has 4 terminal stations. Part of Line 2 was constructed as Line 4, only after its inauguration it was renamed as Line 2. Also one must transfer on Line 3 at El Valle station to continue the ride.
Construction of the first phase of Line 4 (now officially renamed line 2) started in 2001; this line runs parallel to Line 1 to the south, and connects Plaza Venezuela station on Line 1 with Capuchinos station on Line 2. It is expected to provide much needed relief to congestion along this segment of Line 1 where most of Metro's ridership is concentrated.
Los Teques Metro
Construction was initiated on the Los Teques Metro from Caracas Metro Las Adjuntas station (now this expanded station with independent platforms connected by overhead walkways is common to both Metro systems) to the suburban city of Los Teques Alí Primera (formerly called El Tambor) station back in 2001 and completed November 3, 2006.
IFE
Line 3 station La Rinconada is the interchange station between the Caracas Metro and the Caracas Libertador Simón Bolívar IFE train station where connections can be made to and from Charallave and Cúa.
Guarenas / Guatire Metro
The Guarenas / Guatire Metro is a new line with the intention of providing access to the eastern suburban communities. The project consists of 2 parts: first, 4 new metro stations within Caracas (part of the future Line 6); second, a 6-station light rail service. Both subsystems will allow for transfers at the Guaraira Repano (Petare North) station. In December 2006, the government awarded a 2 billion dollar contract for the construction of the new line between a soon-to-be-built Caracas Metro Parque del Este II station and the nearby twin cities of Guarenas / Guatire, with completion set for July 2012. However, by November 2012, only 7% of the metro project had been completed, and the completion date had slipped to at least 2016.
Services
Other than human transportation itself, the Caracas Metro system also provides diverse services to public:
Metrobus
The system possesses a complementary bus transit network called the Metrobus, which covers 20 urban routes and 4 suburban routes, with the aim of transporting users to other popular destinations in the Greater Caracas area that are not reached by the Metro, including bedroom communities close to the city.
External ticket sale
A modality implanted by the enterprise that consists in the wholesale of tickets used in the Metro and in the Metrobús. An amount of tickets is sold to some middlemen, and these to authorized points of sale, such as kiosks and other commercial establishments. This allows Metro users to buy tickets when not being inside a station, thus making them more widely available. The points of sale formally authorized for these operations are identified with the Metroseñal (Metro-sign). Tickets sold at such locals have a price discount of 3%.
Fares and types of tickets
The values for tickets depend mostly on the number of travels the user has planned. There are also special issues for students, and fares differ for the Metrobús usage. The types of tickets and their pricings are listed below.
Future expansions
Immediate plans include the completion of the second phase of Line 3, which runs from the El Valle station to La Rinconada, the latter being opened on October 2006, and now has the addition of the intermediate stations (Los Jardines, Coche and Mercado) which were officially opened on January 9, 2010.
The next phases of the Line 2 extension (also known as Line 5 during construction phase) will be constructed (opening was planned for 2012). The first project a 7.5 km extension includes 6 new stations Bello Monte, Las Mercedes, Tamanaco, Chuao, Bello Campo and Parque del Este II station. A separate project to be carried out simultaneously , a further 6.7 km Line 2 extension (also known as Line 5 or Metro Guarenas-Guatire Urban Route during the construction phase) with 4 additional stations will include the following stations Montecristo, Boleíta, El Marques and terminal/transfer station La Urbina (Petare Norte).
The La Urbina station will be also be Caracas Guarenas-Guatire light rail transfer point. This 31.4 km long section was originally assigned funds for a 2012 completion.
Long range plans contemplate expanding the system with two more lines: Line 5 (15 km long) to southeast Caracas, and Line 6 (17 km) that would run parallel to Line 1 to the north.