The Companhia Paulista de Trens Metropolitanos (CPTM) () is one of the

rapid transit Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT) or heavy rail, commonly referred to as metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport that is generally built in urban areas. A grade separation, grade separated rapid transit line below ground su ...

companies serving the city of

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

, alongside the

São Paulo Metro The São Paulo Metro (, ), commonly called the ''Metrô'', is one of the rapid transit companies serving the city of São Paulo, alongside the Companhia Paulista de Trens Metropolitanos, São Paulo Metropolitan Trains Company (CPTM), Via Quatro ...

, Via Quatro and Via Mobilidade, all four forming the largest metropolitan rail transport network of

Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...

. It was created on 28 May 1992, from several railroads that already existed in

Greater São Paulo Greater São Paulo () is a nonspecific term for one of the multiple definitions of the large metropolitan area located in the São Paulo state in Brazil. Metropolitan Area A legally defined specific term, ''Região Metropolitana de São Paulo' ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

. Part of the

rail

system A system is a group of interacting or interrelated elements that act according to a set of rules to form a unified whole. A system, surrounded and influenced by its open system (systems theory), environment, is described by its boundaries, str ...

, the CPTM currently operates 57 stations in five lines, with a total length of . The system carries about 2 million passengers a day. On 7 December 2018, CPTM set a weekday ridership record with 3,221,035 trips.

History

Most of railways now run by the CPTM were built between 1860 and 1957 by the São Paulo Railway (the lines 7 and 10),

Estrada de Ferro Sorocabana Rail transport in Brazil began in the 19th century and there were many different railway companies. The railways were nationalised, nationalized under RFFSA (Rede Ferroviária Federal, Sociedade Anônima) in 1957. Between 1999 and 2007, RFFSA ...

(the lines 8 and 9) and

Estrada de Ferro Central do Brasil The Estrada de Ferro Central do Brasil was one of the principal railways of Brazil, uniting the states of Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Minas Gerais. Origins On 9 February 1855, The imperial government of Brazil signed a contract with Edward Pr ...

(lines 11 and 12). These railways were eventually incorporated into the state-owned Rede Ferroviária Federal (RFFSA) in 1957 and Ferrovia Paulista S.A. (FEPASA) 1971. Finally, in 1992 the urban sections of RFFSA and FEPASA merged, forming the CPTM. Between the end of the 1990s and the early 2000s, the CPTM began the conversion of some metropolitan lines to provide a service similar to

and better integrate with the

. Most of the stations where either rebuilt or modernized and new trains were purchased allowing the headway of lines to be as low as four minutes in some lines. This experience started in the Line E in the year 2000, in the stretch known as "East Express", serving the east end of São Paulo City and running parallel to the Line 3 - Red. The proposed Trens Intercidades regional railway project is considering using the Line 7 tracks for providing service to neighboring cities of

Jundiaí Jundiaí is a Municipalities of Brazil, municipality in the state of São Paulo (state), São Paulo, in the Southeast Region, Brazil, Southeast Region of Brazil, located north of São Paulo. The population of the city is 443,221, with an area ...

Campinas Campinas (, ''Plains'' or ''Meadows'') is a Brazilian Municipalities of Brazil, municipality in São Paulo (state), São Paulo State, part of the country's Southeast Region, Brazil, Southeast Region. According to the 2020 estimate, the city's popul ...

and Americana. In 2018, the CPTM opened the Line 13, the first line completely built and operated by the company. This line connects the Line 12 to the São Paulo–Guarulhos International Airport, with a special Express service connecting it to the central Luz station, and another service connecting it to the Brás station, both only operating on a specific schedule. In 2021, the operation of Lines 8 and 9 was granted to the private company Via Mobilidade.https://www.parceriaseminvestimentos.sp.gov.br/projeto-qualificado/linha-8-diamante-e-linha-9-esmeralda/

Operation

The CPTM operates five lines in the

area, identified by number and color. Most of these lines run on existing surface tracks that continue out of

MRS Logística MRS Logística S.A. (''Malha Regional Sudeste'', "Southeast Regional Network") is a freight rail company located in Brazil that operates of track. It is the concessionary company that operates the Southeastern Federal Railroad Network (formerly ...

intercity freight lines and share right of way with freight trains. The more lightly used outer sections of several lines have

level crossing A level crossing is an intersection where a railway line crosses a road, Trail, path, or (in rare situations) airport runway, at the same level, as opposed to the railway line or the road etc. crossing over or under using an Overpass#Railway, o ...

s. Service starts every day at 4 AM, when trains depart from each terminus, until the last train leaves at midnight. On Saturdays operation is extended until 1 AM. The company charges a flat fare that can be paid either by paper ticket sold at the stations or with a rechargeable smartcard, and grants access to any of the rail lines on the Greater São Paulo, including lines operated by the

Lines

Express services

Future developments

Gallery

File:Linha6dentro.jpg, Internal view of a 2000 Series CPTM train File:Estação da Luz 2015.jpg, Luz Station. File:Brooklin ¹².jpg, CPTM 2070 Series train in Brooklin CBD. File:Estação Ferraz de Vasconcelos2.jpg, Ferraz de Vasconcelos Station. File:Trem_Serie_2500_na_estação_Engenheiro_Goulart_(2020).jpg, Engenheiro Goulart Station

References

External links

*
Official page of the CPTM
*
Secretaria dos Transportes Metropolitanos
{{Authority control Transport companies established in 1992 Brazilian companies established in 1992 Railway companies of Brazil Electric railways in Brazil 5 ft 3 in gauge railways in Brazil Government-owned companies of Brazil Government-owned railway companies Companies based in São Paulo Transport in São Paulo