With
only very few new metros being built nowadays in Europe (in fact the
only one expected in the next few years is Thessaloniki's), I thought
I should see the latest on its very first day. Its inauguration had
been delayed again and again, and as is quite common in Spain, a
final date was not announced until approximately two weeks ago. July
had been targeted some months ago, so I think that eventually they
chose almost the last day of this month to keep the promise and at
the same time have the maximum time to adjust and prepare things.
Well,
eventually, after an official inauguration in the morning, doors
opened for the general public at around 1 pm on 30 July 2014. Being
in the middle of the week and during holiday season, the new metro
was able to cope with the crowds, which had accumulated especially at
El Perchel, the city-side terminus next to the city's main railway
station. Travelling on the metro was free on the first day, but
everybody needed a smartcard, which was distributed for free, to open
the fare gates.
For
a first day, service was quite regular and during the four hours of
exploring each and every station, I did not observe any major
disruptions or delays. There was a lot of staff around to help
people, lots of them probably students on a summer job, while from
autumn they will be among those who actually profit most of the new
system. All in all, the opening was well prepared, although no
spectacular party was held. I think the general reaction from the
locals was quite positive, too.
The
following day, the first day of normal service with everybody
requiring a proper ticket, most stations seemed calm, some had more
staff than passengers, although slowly, more and more people came to
explore the new lines. At the end of the lines, many stayed on the
train, especially on L1, as this line terminates in the middle of
nowhere and with the heat outside, people were more comfortable
staying on a well air-conditioned train. On that day, however, I
observed that some of the next-train indicators did not display
anything but a standard welcome message saying that trains would pass
every 7.5 minutes and 'Gracias por su confianza' which sounds a bit
like 'please, trust us!'.
So,
let's have a closer look at stations and service. The first thing
that surprised me quite positively when I entered El Perchel station
for the first time was the fact that it is a bi-level station, when I
had expected a simple station where the two lines converge. But this
station was generously laid out for cross-platform interchange
between L1 and L2, with a complex junction to the west of that
station. If I observed it correctly, in the future people can change
here in the opposite direction on the same level. As for now, trains
actually switch from one line to the other, so on each level, one
track is currently not used:
I assume that the bi-level tunnel than
continues to Guadalmedina, from where line L2 is planned to continue
north, come to the surface and serve 4-5 stops on its way to Hospital
Civil. By 2017, however, line L1 is supposed to continue from
Guadalmedina to Atarazanes and thus finally serve the city centre
proper. This leads us to one of the major problems of the new system:
it terminates short of what most people would consider the city
centre and the busy old town. El Perchel is located conveniently
between the railway station and the bus station. It is the only
station with exits at both ends of the station, although from the
platform level up to the large mezzanine, stairs and escalators are
only available at the eastern end of the station. A third exit next
to the railway station shopping mall is still under construction. I
don't consider the name of the station very helpful, although it is
consistent with other station names, i.e. they mostly refer to the
neighbourhood where the station is located. But for El Perchel,
something like 'Estación Intermodal' as initially shown on project
maps would be more useful. There is an acoustic announcement that
transfer to all sorts of trains and buses is available here, though,
but station signs do not include a secondary name such as 'El Perchel
– Estación Renfe' or so (generally I don't like ADIF's latest
fashion to call railway station after some local hero, either, as it
makes names very long and difficult to display in full length,
resulting in something like 'MLG. M. ZAMB'...).
The
first station on L1, La Unión, is the only one different from the
otherwise standard pattern. This is due to the fact that it lies
below a narrow street and therefore has two platforms one on top of
the other (inbound on the lower level). The upper level extends into
a side street and accommodates the ticket barriers. This narrow
street is also the cause for two rather tight curves, the one to the
west on the way to Barbarela being extremely tight so trains slow
down to 10-15 km/h and you can hear the wheels squeaking.
The tracks on the rest of the line are pretty well laid with proper
super-elevation in curves, so maximum speeds of 70 km/h can be
reached on longer stretches between stations, like between Portada
Alta and Ciudad de la Justicia on L1 and between Puerta Blanca and
Palacio de los Deportes on L2.
From
Barbarela to Ciudad de la Justicia as well as all stations on L2 are
mostly identical. They all have one (and some also two) encased
entrance pavilion, but I only saw a free-standing logo pole at
Palacio de los Deportes. There are up and down escalators as well as
stairs between them leading to a large vestibule where the ticket
vending machines and fare gates are located. All of them also have a
staff office, but I wonder whether this will be manned during normal
service. Also a lift connects the surface to the mezzanine. Compared
to those in Bilbao, the fare gates are somewhat slow to react and
open, which caused some overcrowding on the first day at El Perchel,
especially as tickets have to be checked also on the way out (mostly
due to the fact that there are five surface stops without fare
gates). They also stay open for a while, so it will be easy to follow
someone without paying.
Once
beyond the fare gates, again a doube set of escalators, stairs
between them as well as a lift connect the mezzanine to the island
platform. The platform level features a high ceiling, in fact no
ceiling at all, instead the space on mezzanine level is open and
unused, although massive concrete girders kind of separate the proper
platform level from that open space above, so maybe in the future it
would be possible to add a proper ceiling and use the space above.
The uniform design of stations is, of course, boring but functional
and pleasant. The walls behind the tracks are just grey, and
hopefully some colourful art is placed there in the future to give
the stations some extra touch. In the original proposals shown some
10 years ago, all stations had bright colours, each a different one.
But in the end, the Andalusian government, just like in Sevilla,
opted for this rather inconspicuous design, giving priority to
functionality rather than artistic design. The platforms are very
wide and include all state-of-the art information panels, next-train
indicators, area maps, network maps, etc. The length of the platform
is laid out for double trainsets, but for the moment only single
units will be used. Although I love these wide spaces, from an
economic point of view, they are a waste of money, considering that
such a huge space is continuously ventilated and that 4-6 escalators
plus 2 lifts in each station consume a lot of energy. Some stations
could certainly have been built without a proper mezzanine, given
that platforms are wide enough and exits located at the ends anyway,
to place fare gates on platform level. On the other hand, I was
missing some additional exits from the large mezzanine, like at
Princesa (which on some maps and displays has an additional 'Huelín'
in its name), there should certainly be a second entrance on the
south side of the road junction to avoid long detours.
Although
the joint operation of L1 and L2 is a good thing, it has caused a lot
of confusion among the new passengers, especially as fixed direction
signs show 'El Perchel' for inbound trains, but the electronic
displays indicate the real destination of the train, i.e. 'Andalucía
Tech' or 'Palacio de los Deportes'. They should change the signs to
'El Perchel – Andalucía Tech' or so, because once the line is
extended to Guadalmedina, they will need to change the signs anyway.
Also, on the trains, before arriving at El Perchel, there should be
an announcement that this train continues on the other line. Talking
about acoustic announcements, the next station is announced in
Spanish and then also in English. The English announcement seems to
be a bit louder than the Spanish, and with the female speaker not
just saying (or shouting) 'next station', she also announces the
name, which due to her slight foreign accent caused at least some
smiles on some passenger faces.
On
L1, trains reach the surface at Universidad from where they continue
west serving another four surface stops which are basically what you
would expect of any modern European tram system. The track is not
covered by lawn, however, but embedded in cobblestones. The noise on
this stretch is quite low, though. There are several level crossings
on this section, and I wonder whether the traffic lights work
properly or not, but these first days they had extra posts at many of
them making sure no cars cross when a tram approaches. Many areas
along this surface section are rather undeveloped or stuck in some
development due to the economic crisis. The area houses many
university facilities, so this section of the line will get busy when
the new term starts. The depot and control centre are located at some
distance from the last stop Andalucía Tech. The surface stops have a
reasonably wide roof, so it provides some shade in the hot Andalusian
sun, also the open space with stone benches causes some air
ventilation. Wisely, stops in the inbound direction have more sitting
space than outbound. On the second day, extra staff was instructing
people to validate their tickets as there is no clear sign and not
doing so would cause problems at the exit gates in the underground
stations.
The
metro trains are actually standard low-floor tram vehicles, the
modular Urbos 3 built by CAF and also in service in other cities like
Sevilla and Zaragoza. I think they have a quite pleasant design and
at 2.65 m, they feel rather spacious. The ride is pretty comfortable,
despite the hard green seats (which for my taste have backrests at an
appropriate angle!). What is most amazing on such a type of transport
system, which after all has the appearance of an underground tram
system, is that the trains run in ATO mode in tunnels, i.e. speeds
are controlled automatically and the driver just presses a button to
start the train after a station stop, just like a proper modern metro
does. Sevilla's metro, which is completely segregated and even has
platform screen doors in all stations, uses the same type of ATO, I
assume. In Málaga, station drafts from as late as 2010 still showed
platform screen doors, too, but these were then omitted. Other
metros like that in Madrid show that these are not really necessary.
As a result of the ATO system, doors are released somewhat too
slowly, and people keep pressing the button trying to open the doors
before the green light appears. Generally, in all the stations,
except La Unión, the train stops in the half closer to the exit,
which is very wise. Actually, the second half of the station could at
least be closed off with a ribbon to avoid that people wait too far
away from the train. Fortunately, stations were made long enough to
allow 2-car sets if demand grows or for special events at the Palacio
de los Deportes. That station does have a much larger entrance
pavilion, but actually no exit in the direction of the arena, so
passengers need to walk around that entrance building to get into the
metro. In fact, I think there should actually be a full exit at the
western end of the platform, at least during events at that venue. At
La Unión, the station with the respective platforms on two different
levels, and with the stairs located in the middle, the trains stop at
the front end of the platform, which should be marked on the floor or
on the walls.
As
for fares, Málaga is a bit like Sevilla or Bilbao, no real
integration with bus services, but at least partly shared
stored-value tickets. The Consorcio de Transportes, the local
transport agency, already had such a card, and this can also be used
and loaded on the metro. For one ride 0.82 EUR is deducted. I do not
see the point why Metro de Málaga has issued and distributed its own
smartcard, which is only valid on the metro. Using their own card, a
trip costs likewise 0.82 EUR. Using the Consorcio card, a discount is
granted when changing to other modes. Single trips for the occasional
metro rider cost 1.35 EUR.
As
the opening date of the metro was announced at rather short notice,
there was no time to adjust bus lines, although I wonder if this is
intended, as the buses are operated by a different company. The L2
corridor is actually served by numerous buses, all of which go
directly into the city centre, so many people will continue to use
the bus instead of the metro. I suggest that Metro establishes a
continuous free bus shuttle between El Perchel and Alameda as long as
the metro extension is not completed. The cost of such a service
would easily be compensated by more paying metro riders.
In
the initial project, the metro was to be extended further east to
Malagueta, and with an intermediate station slightly further east
than the one now planned as a terminus at Atarazanes (a name
referring to the nearby market), although the station will actually
lie beneath the northern lanes of the Alameda, where most of the
city's bus lines end/start or pass through. Before the current
project was decided upon, there was also a proposal for a surface
route along the Alameda, a wide tree-lined avenue. I would have
considered that a feasible option, a ramp on the western side of the
Guadalmedina river would easily be possible, with the road there
being much too wide anyway. Along the Alameda, the tram would have
become a visible part of the urban transport scene, and for the price
of digging a tunnel below the river, the tram could have reached
beyond the initial Malagueta terminus. Anyway, whatever the decision
is, I think that Málaga has chosen the right type of system, which
combines metro with tram and thus allows future extensions on the
surface through outer areas.
So
with this system now finally in operation, let's hope that Granada is
also able to enjoy its 'Metropolitano' soon, although there the
underground portion will just be a short section of the entire line.
Besides
the new metro, Málaga also boasts a rather busy Cercanías line that
connects the city with coastal towns such as Torremolinos and
Fuengirola. The airport is located between Málaga and Torremolinos
and is also served by an underground station every 20 minutes. The
new station there was built a couple of years ago when the airport
was expanded and a longer section of the railway line was put
underground; this section features another underground station called
Guadalhorce in an industrial area and thus barely used. Another
section closer to the city centre was put underground in conjunction
with the construction of the high-speed line into Málaga and
features an underground station at Victoria Kent. Slightly older are
the underground stations adjacent to the main railway station, now
called María Zambrano, from where a single-track extension leads
further into the city centre, with a rather narrow single-track
stub-end terminus at Málaga Centro-Alameda. The station actually
lies on the western side of the riverbed, but one of the access
tunnels runs below the river to an exit quite close to the western
end of the Alameda. So, as of now, the Cercanías line thus actually
gets closer to the old town than the metro. Trains run every 20
minutes to Fuengirola, the headway being limited by the single-track
stub and also other single-track sections beyond the airport. At
Torremolinos and Fuengirola, trains also stop underground. There was
a project to extend it further west beyond Marbella and regauge it to
1435 mm so that long-distance trains can serve the Costa del Sol
directly from Madrid. But given the current economic situation and
with many other rail projects unfinished, this project does not seem
to be a priority. A second Cercanías line, C-2, is operated between
Málaga and Álora on the old Iberian-gauge track towards Córdoba,
but with less frequent trains than on line C-1.
LINKS
Málaga Metro at UrbanRail.Net
