Metrovalencia

Metrovalencia is an urban rail including rapid transit and trams, serving Valencia and its metropolitan area. The network is a modern amalgamation of former FEVE narrow gauge electric-operated suburban railways. It is a large suburban network that crosses the city of Valencia, with all trains continuing out to the suburbs. It also has destinations on lines that make it more closely resemble commuter trains. The unique system combines light railway, metro and several tram operations north of the Túria riverbed park with line 4. Trains of lines 1, 3, 5 and 9 have automatic train operation in 25.3 kilometers of underground system. Tram lines 4, 6, 8 and 10 are operated by modern trams.
This network consists of more than 161.7 km of route, of which 29.8 km is underground.
The system authority Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat Valenciana uses bilingual signage in Valencian and Spanish.

Operations

Lines

Line	Terminals	Year opened	Service type	Length	Stations	Passengers in 2018
	Bétera – Castelló	1988	Underground + Commuter train		40	9,808,295
	Llíria – Torrent Avinguda	1988	Underground + Commuter train		33	9,124,791
	Rafelbunyol – Aeroport	1995	Underground + Commuter train		27	14,147,324
	Mas del Rosari/Ll. Llarga/Fira – Dr. Lluch	1994	Tramway		33	6,644,251
	Marítim – Aeroport	2003	Underground		18	10,774,501
	Tossal del Rei – Marítim	2007	Tramway		21	2,112,300
	Marítim – Torrent Avinguda	2015	Underground		16	7,702,423
	Neptú – Marítim	2015	Tramway		4	433,213
	Alboraia-Peris Aragó – Riba-roja de Túria	2015	Underground + Commuter train		23	8,695,441
	Alacant – Natzaret	2022	Underground + Tramway		8	N/A

Notes: In 1998, Line 2 was combined with Line 1; it became a separate branch again in 2015. Lines 7 to 9 were created in 2015 by splitting existing branch lines, with the only new stations for these lines consisting of the extension from Manises to Riba-roja de Túria.
The network includes five unmanned stations: Rocafort, Fuente del Jarro, Massarojos, Fondo de Benaguasil and Font de l'Almaguer.

Technical data

Gauge width:
Current system: 750 V DC / 1500 V DC, overhead wire
Passenger numbers

In 2012, an estimated 63,103,814 passengers used the service, a decline of 2.8% from the 65,074,726 who had used it in 2011. The 2011 figures had shown a 5% decline compared to 2010. On average 172,887 passengers a day used the service in 2012 with the busiest day being 18 March, the final day of the Fallas festival, when 482,960 passengers used the service. The three most used stations on the network were all in the centre of Valencia: Xàtiva, beside Valencia's main train station, with 4,769,628 passengers in 2012, Colón, in one of Valencia's main shopping streets, with 4,189,736 passengers and Àngel Guimerà, an interchange station for lines 1,2,3,5 and 9 situated beside Valencia old town, with 2,461,012 users. The fourth and fifth busiest stations were Túria, next to Valencia's main bus station, with 2,035,521 and Facultats, serving the University of Valencia, with 1,951,080 users. The remaining stations in the top eight were Plaça de Espanya, Amistat and Mislata. The first two of these were located in areas near Valencia centre, while Mislata was the main station for the satellite town of the same name.
In 2014, the system carried 60,111,000 passengers.
In 2015, 60,686,589 passengers used the network, reversing a decline which had occurred in previous years. Seventeen stations reported more than 1 million users in that year.
In 2019, patronage reached an all-time high of over 69 million. The ten busiest stations were Xàtiva with 5,459,784 passengers, Colón ; Àngel Guimerà ; Túria ; Plaça d'Espanya ; Facultats ; Benimaclet ; Amistat ; Mislata ; Avinguda del Cid.
In 2022, the system carried 63,361,626 passengers.

History

The Metrovalencia network traces its origins to the Trenet de València system of narrow-gauge interurban railways, of which its first section, built by the Valencian Tramway Society was opened in 1888 between Valencia and Llíria. Several further extensions of the Trenet were later built between 1891 and 1912. In 1917, both the Valencian Tramway Corporation and the Compagnie Génerale des Tramways de Valence Société Lyonnaise were merged into a single company called the Valencia Tram and Rail Company. After years of losses, the rail operations of CTFV were finally acquired by FEVE in 1964.

First four lines

On 8 October 1988, the tunnel through which Line 1 crosses Valencia was opened between Sant Isidre and Empalme, allowing through-running via València-Jesús to Castelló de la Ribera. Line 2 went from València-Sud to Llíria, with some trains terminating in Paterna. The opening was marked by a ceremony in Plaça Espanya station attended by Transport Minister José Barrionuevo and Valencian President Joan Lerma.
In May 1994, the first tranvia in the system, Line 4, opened. Valencia was the first city in Spain to use this mode of transport in the modern era as trams had been withdrawn from Valencia in the 1970s and replaced by buses. Initially, the line was long and had 21 stations. The line connected the suburban lines with high demand zones such as the Polytechnic University, the new university campus, and the, replacing the former line from Empalme to El Grau.
In May 1995, Line 3 was created via a new tunnel from El Palmaret in Alboraria to Alameda. The extension reused an existing railway line from Pont de Fusta to Rafelbunyol, of which part was scrapped. The remainder was switched from 750 V to 1500 V.
Further alterations followed five years later. On 16 September 1998, Line 2 was merged with Line 1, and Line 3 was extended from Alameda to Avinguda del Cid in the west with a branch to Torrent in the south. Then, in May 1999, Line 3 was extended again from Avinguda del Cid to Mislata-Almassil.

Lines 5 and 6, and more extensions

In April 2003, Line 5 was opened, taking over the Torrent branch of Line 3 together with a newly constructed branch from Alameda to Ayora. One year later, Lines 1 and 5 were extended from Torrent to Torrent Avinguda, a distance of.
On 3 October 2005, an infill station between Colón and Jesús was opened on Line 5 with a connection to València-Nord. Additionally, Line 4 was extended to Mas del Rosari, and on 20 December to Lloma Llarga-Terramelar.
On 2 April 2007, Line 5 was extended eastward to Marítim. This station allows transfers to a tram operating to the port at Neptú station, which was originally listed only as an extension of Line 5. Simultaneously, Line 5 was extended west with Line 3 to a new station at the Valencia Airport.
On 22 September 2007, Line 6 was opened, linking the neighborhoods of Orriols and Torrefiel to the metro system for the first time. Additionally a new infill station, Torre del Virrei, was added to Line 1, between L'Eliana and La Pobla de Vallbona.
On 12 December 2010, two overground stations on Lines 3, Alboraya and Palmaret, were replaced by new subterranean stations: Alboraia Peris Aragó and Alboraia - Palmaret, respectively. Additionally, on Line 1, Jesús was renamed Joaquin Sorolla, while the Hospital station was renamed Safranar.
On 6 March 2015, a 4-station spur from Rosas to Riba-roja de Túria was opened as Line 9. This followed the path of a regional train line, which had been closed in 2005.
In April 2015, the metro map was redrawn with several of the branches split into separate lines, increasing the number of lines to 9.
On 1 February 2022, the number of fare zones was reduced from four to two, as part of a reduction in ticket prices, with a supplemental fare applying to Aeroport station. Additionally, the names of 21 stations were changed to make the names more readily identifiable, to adapt them to the urban changes in their areas, and to promote "linguistic normalisation" The changes took effect alongside other changes made in preparation for the opening of the new tram Line 10, which opened for service on 17 May 2022.

Accidents and incidents

Between 2002 and the first quarter of 2012, 83 accidents had occurred on the network, costing the lives of 56 people.
On 9 September 2005, two trains crashed into each other on Line 1. Nobody was killed, but according to early reports 35 people were injured, 4 of whom were taken to hospital, their condition described as serious. The first train had been stationary waiting for a red signal. The second used its emergency brakes to avoid a collision, but was hit by a third train. The force of the impact severely damaged the drivers' cabs at the front of the last train and at the rear of the second train. The crash occurred between Paiporta and Picanya about south-east of the city centre. The 3729 and 3730 EMUs are now a single EMU with 3729A and the 3730A cars, the 'B' cars were severely damaged and are currently at València-Sud workshop, waiting to be scrapped.
The date 3 July 2006 was a dark day for the Valencia metro. In a severe accident, a two-car EMU derailed between Jesús and Plaça d'Espanya stations. At least 43 people were killed and 47 injured. It was the worst metro accident in Spanish history.
The system was severely damaged by the floods on 29 October 2024, with the lines south of the city particularly badly affected, halting service. The tram lines 4, 6 and 8 resumed service on 9 November 2024, with a bus replacement service covering the route of the other lines. Lines 3, 5 and 9 were restored to full service on 3 December 2024, with lines 1 and 2 restored from the northern terminus to Plaça d'Espanya and Line 7 from the northern terminus to Sant Isidre.