Mexico City Metrobús

History

The Mexico City Metrobús was opened along the northernmost portion of Line 1 on 19 June 2005. Initial service was from Metro Indios Verdes south to Metro Insurgentes. This was quickly followed by a southward expansion from Metro Insurgentes to MB station Doctor Gálvez, bringing the line length up to 20 kilometres (12 mi). Many of the stations along Line 1 feature cantilevered glass canopies designed by architect Carlos Monge.

Before and after

The system replaced 372 standard buses and microbuses that served Avenida de los Insurgentes with 212 articulated buses that run at an average speed of 20 km/h (12 mph), doing 60 km/h (37 mph) as maximum. Doing so, travel times along the corridor are reduced up to 50%.

Environmental impact

Besides addressing the bus service problem, the BRT Metrobús project emerged in the context of the city’s efforts to reduce Air pollution in Mexico City with a program called Proaire 2002-2010. According to Metrobús, annual environmental benefits include a reduction of 35,400 long tons (36,000 t) of carbon dioxide, 9,700 long tons (9,900 t) of carbon monoxide, 206 long tons (209 t) of NOx, and 1.27 long tons (1.29 t) of PM10 particulates

2008 expansion

The original Line 1 was expanded with the inclusion of nine new stations in order to achieve full coverage of Avenida Insurgentes. The southward expansion of service along Line 1 started service on 13 March 2008 and brought the line's length up to 30 kilometres (19 mi).

2009 expansion

A second Metrobús line was built in 2009, running east to west along Eje 4 Sur. This second line connects Metro Tacubaya, Etiopía, Patriotismo and with the Insurgentes Metrobús at its Nuevo León stop, and was opened on 16 December 2009.

2010 expansion

According to the Mexican newspaper, El Universal, construction of the first 16 km (9.9 mi) of Línea 3 (line 3) began on 5 March 2010 and was scheduled to end in April 2011. However, service along Line 3 started on 8 February 2011. During construction, for every tree taken down three were planted, for a total of 1,546 trees planted. In addition, it was estimated that Line 3 will carry 100,000 passengers per day. Travel time will be reduced by up to 40%.

2011 expansion

In late 2010 the Head of Government of the Federal District Marcelo Ebrard announced a plan to build a new Metrobús Line 4 that would run from Buenavista Station in the west of the city eastward towards Mexico City International Airport. Construction on Line 4 started on 4 July 2011, although the start of construction was met with some protest from residents and business owners along the proposed route.

2013 expansion

On November 5, 2013, Line 5 opened, running along Eje 3 Oriente connecting San Lazaro with Metro Río de los Remedios to the northeast;

2016 expansion

In January 2016, Line 6 opened, running along Eje 5 Norte connecting El Rosario with Aragón

Future expansion

It is planned to open Line 7 in 2017, it will run along Paseo de la Reforma connecting Metro Indios Verdes with Periferico with a fleet of approximately 80 Alexander Dennis Enviro500 Double-decker buses.

Passenger access and payment

Ticketing is by pre-paid proximity smartcard, which travellers have to pass through turnstiles at the entry to the separated bus platforms. During the early months of the system's operations, limited availability of the cards required a temporary method for access to the system involving purchasing a normal single-trip paper ticket at a cost of MXN$4.50. Starting in October 2005, and with smartcard supply able to cover the demand, access is done exclusively by using the card.

As of 2014, the single-trip cost is MXN$6.00 (about € 0.27 or US$ 0.38) A new MB smartcard, preloaded with one voyage, can be purchased for MXN$10.00 (≈ € 0.80/US$ 1.14) and "recharged" for MXN$6.00 per trip.

The smartcard system has generated controversy, especially from occasional and one-time users who complain about the MXN$15.00 fee for a single-voyage card, for this is common that sometimes people ask others who have the smartcard to charge for them a trip.

Service is free for those over 70 years old, or disabled, as well as for children under 5 accompanied by an adult.

The first line covers a distance of up to 30 kilometres (19 mi), running in a dedicated bus lane built within the central reservation (median) of Avenida de los Insurgentes. Avenida Insurgentes is one of the city's main north–south arterial routes, constitutes a section of the Pan-American Highway, and is reputed to be the longest urban avenue in the world.

The line starts at Metro Indios Verdes, a large multimodal transport node in the Gustavo A. Madero borough. From there it runs south, through Cuauhtémoc and Benito Juárez, before terminating in the La Joya district of Tlalpan borough, providing a total of 45 stations. It was built in two sections, with a split at Metro Insurgentes, the notional dividing point between the avenue's northern and southern stretches, just south of where Avenida Insurgentes intersects with Paseo de la Reforma.

On its route south from Indios Verdes, the Metrobús also connects with Metro stations at Deportivo 18 de Marzo, Potrero, La Raza, Buenavista, Revolución, Insurgentes, and Chilpancingo, providing connections with Metro Lines 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, and 9. The proposed southward extension of Mexico City Metro Line 7 will also enable that line to connect at the Metrobús' original southernmost station, Doctor Gálvez.

Line 2 runs 20 kilometres (12 mi) from Tacubaya in the west, where there is a connection to the Metro Tacubaya station; to Tepalcates in the east, where there is a connection to the Metro Tepalcates station.

Line 2 opened on 16 December 2009.

Line 3 runs 17 kilometres (11 mi) from Tenayuca northwest of the city southward to Etiopía II, where there is connection to Metrobús Line 2 as well as the Metro Etiopía station.

Line 3 opened on 8 February 2011.

Line 4 includes a two-step construction process with the first 28-kilometre (17 mi) operational segment built between Buenavista and Metro San Lázaro. An extension provides travel between San Lázaro and the airport. Instead of travelling along a single avenue or axis road, Line 4 traffic circulates around the Centro Histórico. To navigate the turns and narrow streets in and near the Centro Histórico, Line 4 uses 12-metre-long (39 ft) light buses instead of the 18-metre (59 ft) articulated buses used on the other lines in the system. The stations for Line 4 look more like conventional bus stops and are built at curbside instead of within a dedicated portion of a central reservation as used on the other lines.

The MB operates from 04:30 to 24:00 (midnight) Monday through Friday, and from 05:00 to 24:00 on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. Hours for individual stations may vary in the mornings. A flash-based map of the system is available at the Metrobús website.

Line 4 opened on 1 April 2012.

Line 5 runs 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from Río de los Remedios in the north, where there is a connection to the Río de los Remedios station; to San Lázaro in the eastern center, where there is a connection to the Metro San Lázaro

Line 5 opened on 5 November 2013.

Line 6 runs 20 kilometres (12 mi) from Villa de Aragón in the east, where there is a connection to the Villa de Aragón station; to El Rosario in the west, where there is a connection to the Metro El Rosario.

Line 6 opened on 21 January 2016.