President Piñera launches final phase of Santiago Metro Line 3 preparations

This morning President Sebastián Piñera launched the final phase of the start-up of Metro Line 3, a process that allows for all of the functions of the line to be tested before it is put into service.

“When we open a new metro line, we are not only extending our transportation system. It is much more than that. A good public transportation system means dignity, better quality of life and more free time for all Chileans,” the President said at an event that began with a tour of the Ñuñoa station and a trip to Fernando Castillo Velasco in a metro car.

Line 3 will span 22 kilometers, connecting Quilicura to La Reina in approximately 30 minutes. It will have 18 stations.

The project will benefit 1.1 million inhabitants in the Santiago districts of Quilicura, Conchalí, Independencia, Santiago, Ñuñoa and La Reina. Three of them - Quilicura, Conchalí and Independencia - will be connected to the metro system for the first time.

“Our work on this line is part of a major overhaul of the Santiago Metro that will make it the linchpin of the public transportation system,” remarked the President, who appeared with Transportation and Telecommunications Minister Gloria Hutt and Metro President Louis de Grange.

The Line 3 project is in its final phase and is 97% complete. It is scheduled to open to the public in late 2018 or January 2019.

New Stations

Line 3 will have 18 stations and combinations that will total nearly 230,000 additional trips. The stations are listed below:

• Los Libertadores

• Cardenal Caro

• Vivaceta

• Conchalí

• Plaza Chacabuco

• Hospitales

• Puente Cal y Canto

• Plaza de Armas

• Universidad de Chile

• Parque Almagro

• Matta

• Irarrázaval

• Monseñor Eyzaguirre

• Ñuñoa

• Chile-España

• Diagonal Oriente

• Plaza Egaña

• Fernando Castillo Velasco

Once Line 3 is open to the public, the Metro network will have136 stations, span 140 kilometers and serve the residents of 26 districts in the capital city.

In addition to building Line 3, the Santiago Metro has plans to extend the line by 3.8 kilometers and to add three new stations that will serve 210,000 people in Quilicura by 2022.