The line will begin at Chamartín station and include three stops: Centro de Negocios, Fuencarral Sur, and Fuencarral Norte. According to Isabel Díaz Ayuso, it will be the metro’s first autonomous line.

Today, the president of the Madrid Regional Government, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, and the president of Distrito Castellana Norte, Álvaro Aresti, signed an agreement to begin preliminary development of the new metro line that will service the Madrid Nuevo Norte urban development project.

As explained at the signing—attended by the minister of Transport and Infrastructure, David Pérez, and the minister of the Environment, Land Planning, and Sustainability, Paloma Martín—this new commuter line, which will depart from Chamartín station and include three stops (Centro de Negocios, Fuencarral Sur, and Fuencarral Norte), will extend three kilometres in length and cater to a potential demand of 40,000 daily travellers.

As the president of the Madrid Regional Government further explained, the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure’s General Directorate of Infrastructure will design and plan the metro network’s first line to operate autonomously.

Partnership agreement

The agreement signed today governs the partnership formula between the DCN and the Madrid Regional Government to schedule and coordinate, both technically and temporally, the so-called initial development of this new metro line, which includes the drafting and approval of the studies and designs necessary to execute this infrastructure project.

The work includes the preparation of the Special Plan and the tender for an informative survey, including the corresponding environmental documentation and formalities, as well as the architectural and civil building works for the metro line, workshops, depots, as well as their access and connecting branch lines.

The agreement also establishes the terms and conditions with which the DCN will finance the costs associated with this initial development (9,046,138.83 euros), which will be part of the maximum amount of 141,010,507.56 euros that the company will allocate to the financing of the new metro line, as stated in the Modification of the General Plan and in the Madrid Nuevo Norte framework agreement. Above this limit, financing will correspond to the Madrid Regional Government.

A fine example of public-private partnership

According to the president of the Madrid Regional Government, “Madrid Nuevo Norte wants to create a more humane, respectful city that looks to the future,” adding “This agreement moves in that direction thanks to the public transport infrastructures that will connect this project to key mobility hubs throughout the region”.

For his part, DCN president, Álvaro Aresti, defined the agreement as “the best example of everything this development signifies and what it will contribute to all residents. […] Firstly, it is a clear symbol of the commitment of both the public and private sectors to sustainable mobility; and secondly, it is a benchmark in what can be achieved when public administrations and private investment collaborate,” he added.

He defined Madrid Nuevo Norte as “the finest example of public-private partnership,” resulting in “one of the world’s most important urban development projects and doubtless one of the most ambitious and advanced in terms of sustainability”.

A new model of sustainable mobility

Madrid Nuevo Norte proposes a new city model that champions sustainable mobility based on an extensive public transport network that includes the metro, commuter trains, city and intercity buses, and pioneering high-capacity bus system, all to facilitate travel.

With this extensive transport network, Madrid Nuevo Norte aims to break down social barriers by providing residents with quick and efficient access to and from other areas of Madrid. It is estimated that more than five million commuters will be able to reach Madrid Nuevo Norte in under an hour.

The project also includes a 13-km network of bike lanes, which will connect to the Green Cycling Ring and the Colmenar Viejo bike lane, to facilitate mobility by bike or on foot within the future neighbourhood and other nearby areas.