The Community of Madrid has officially opened the long-awaited extension of Metro Line 3 to El Casar station in Getafe—marking the first expansion of the city’s metro network in a decade.
This new 2.6 km section connects Metro Line 3 to MetroSur (Line 12), providing a second direct link between southern municipalities and central Madrid. The extension is expected to serve nearly one million residents across Getafe, Alcorcón, Fuenlabrada, Leganés and Móstoles, with an estimated daily ridership of 35,000.
The EUR 129 million project combined traditional tunnelling with sequential excavation techniques—used for the first time in the region due to the presence of crystallised gypsum. Over 2,000 workers contributed to the works.
The upgraded El Casar station has been transformed into a fully accessible, high-capacity interchange featuring six escalators, three lifts and a 670m² concourse. A prominent mural by artist Almudena Robledano, depicting Don Quixote and Sancho Panza, pays tribute to the local Los Molinos neighbourhood.
In addition, a new 565-space park-and-ride facility has been constructed, offering free parking for public transport users and future electric vehicle charging points. The station integrates metro, Renfe Cercanías C3 services, and interurban bus routes (including 447 and N807), creating a major multimodal transport hub.
In 2023, nearly 76 million passengers used Metro Line 3 and 46.5 million travelled on MetroSur, bringing combined annual ridership close to 122 million.
Partially financed through European funds, the extension aims to reduce journey times and promote sustainable mobility across the southern Madrid region.
The Line 3 extension – part of a broader investment
The Line 3 extension is part of a broader investment in expanding and modernising Madrid’s metro network. Ongoing projects include the extension of Line 11 from Plaza Elíptica to Conde de Casal, where the arrival of the tunnel boring machine Mayrit is expected to accelerate progress—boring 15 metres per day compared to the two metres achieved by conventional methods.
Work has also been awarded for the extension of Line 5 to Terminals 1, 2 and 3 of Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport. Meanwhile, plans are being developed for a new metro line to serve the Madrid Nuevo Norte development.
The Line 6 automation project is another key initiative, expected to significantly increase service frequency, reduce intervals to two minutes, and achieve substantial energy savings during acceleration and braking.
The Community of Madrid continues to be recognised for its world-class public transport system. In 2024, the region recorded a historic high, with more than 715 million metro passengers.
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