The Malaga metro increases frequencies for the return to class of students

With the second half of September comes the new academic year in high schools and universities, and also new opportunities to return to class... by public transport. The Malaga Metro has just received authorization from the Regional Government to put into circulation two of the three trains it recently purchased, which are now located at the Workshops and Garages site, next to Los Asperones.

The result is a direct improvement in the frequency of trains passing through the stations during peak hours in the morning and afternoon, on both lines. Thus, the interval between trains has been reduced to a minimum of 4 minutes and 45 seconds. Previously, it was every five minutes. This occurs between 7:30 and 9:45 in the morning, and from 1:00 to 3:00 in the afternoon, on all working days, according to data provided by the Regional Ministry of Development.

Therefore, it is 15 seconds less and, although it may seem like a minimal reduction, it will allow reducing the waiting time for travelers at the stations. It is important to remember that at times of maximum saturation, especially at the start of the academic year, the carriages sometimes reach 100% of their capacity at intermediate stops and cannot admit more passengers. These improvements will also be applied during other times of peak demand throughout the year, such as Christmas and Easter.

This advance has been possible once the concessionaire company Metro de Malaga received the authorization to commission two trains from the Public Works Agency, after successfully completing the circulation tests. Therefore, the subway now has a total fleet of 20 trains. And the improvements will be extended in a few weeks, once the authorization process for the third and last unit purchased is completed (up to a total fleet of 21 units).

21

trains will be the fleet of the Malaga Metro once the last unit that has arrived is active, and which is currently being tested. It is worth remembering that the initial fleet was 14, and was expanded to 18 to serve the Center. Now it has had to be further increased in advance due to the rise of this mode of transport.

The Minister of Development, Rocío Díaz, values this progress as "a reflection of the permanent commitment of the Regional Government of Andalusia and the concessionaire company to improving the quality of the service, through a permanent review of aspects that can favor the provision of a more efficient service for users, and in line with the favorable behavior of the demand."

Ahead of Time

The fact is that the concessionaire has been forced to put them into circulation much earlier than planned due to the surge in demand. Initially, these three machines were intended for when the subway would reach the Civil Hospital, by 2030. However, the Ministry of Development admits that this second expansion of the fleet (there was already a first reinforcement for the arrival at Alameda Principal and El Corte Inglés), "has been anticipated due to the favorable evolution of passenger demand in the metropolitan railway since its arrival in the Center."

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The metro transported 18.26 million users in 2024, a 34.2% increase from 2023. And in the first half of this year, passenger demand reached 9.67 million users, a 7.7% increase. The analysis of demand evolution, based on the hypothesis that the growth level will be maintained in the second half of the year, leads to the conclusion that the Malaga subway may approach 20 million users by December of this year.

To achieve this, the same growth rate of 7.7% is applied to the 9.27 million who used this mode of transport from July to December. This would result in 9.98 million. And the sum of both semesters results in a total of 19.65 million.

The new machines have been manufactured by the Spanish company CAF and belong to the Urbos 100 series. Once the entire new fleet is operational, the vehicle fleet will have increased from the initial 14 units to 21.