The Quito Metro (), abbreviated as MDQ, is a
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 ...
system consisting of a single line in
Quito
Quito (; ), officially San Francisco de Quito, is the capital city, capital and second-largest city of Ecuador, with an estimated population of 2.8 million in its metropolitan area. It is also the capital of the province of Pichincha Province, P ...
, the capital of
Ecuador
Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...
.
History
Construction on the main south and north stations began in December 2012. Construction of the metro line itself began in January 2016.
The metro was projected to be operational by August 2020,
but the opening was delayed numerous times.
The official inauguration was held on 21 December 2022, and commercial service started with some tests with passengers on 2 May 2023.
After technical problems plagued the launch, service was shut down on 11 May.
Later that year, the Quito metro initiated its commercial operations on 1 December 2023.
System
The system's first line, which includes 15 stations, extends from Quitumbe in the south of the city to El Labrador in the north of the city. The 15 stations on this line are, from north to south:
*
El Labrador
*
Jipijapa
*
Iñaquito
*
La Carolina
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Pradera
*
Universidad Central
*
El Ejido
*
La Alameda
*
San Francisco
San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
*
La Magdalena
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El Recreo
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Cardenal de la Torre
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Solanda
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Morán Valverde
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Quitumbe
The station at
Plaza de San Francisco (by the
San Francisco monastery), is the only station placed in the
historic center of Quito (declared a
World Heritage Site
World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...
by
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
in 1978).
Due to archaeological remains found at the proposed site of the San Francisco station in late 2016, the station was moved two blocks further south to the Plaza 24th of May, and the remains will not be disturbed further.
Every station is painted in a distinct color to help with passenger orientation.
The design of Line 1 allows for five
infill stations to be built if demand warrants, and for a potential 5 km extension northwards to the Ofelia bus terminal.
File:Construction, Metro de Quito, Parque La Carolina, Ecuador (pic.b)1.jpg
File:Construction, Metro de Quito, Parque La Carolina, Ecuador (pic.b).jpg
File:(Metro de Quito) side of work truck,.jpg
File:Quito Metro, June 2016, Plaza de San Francisco, pic a1 Centro Histórico de Quito.jpg
File:Quito Metro, June 2016, Plaza de San Francisco, pic a3 Centro Histórico de Quito.jpg
File:Quito Metro, June 2016, Plaza de San Francisco, pic a4 Centro Histórico de Quito.jpg
Network map
References
External links
*
Quito on ''UrbanRail.net''
Quito Metro
Railway lines opened in 2023
2023 establishments in Ecuador
{{Rapid transit in Latin America