Mexico City Metro

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A distinctive orange train on surface track near Metro General Anaya on Line 2

The Mexico City Metro (formally: Sistema de Transporte Colectivo Metro or STC Metro) provides metro service to the central and northern area of the Mexican Federal District and surrounding municipalities in the State of México. In 2004 the system served an average of 3.9 million passengers per day.

Metro Observatorio. Exits are marked "Salida" and passages to other metro lines are marked "Correspondencia".

The Mexico City Metro was the first metro system in the world to identify each station individually with a symbol in order to help the illiterate segment of the population (see below). Currently it is also one of the cheapest–a ticket from any station to any other currently costs MXN$2.00 (around USD$0.19). This low price is maintained by government subsidies; estimates suggest that the unsubsidized cost of a ticket would be between MXN$4.00 and $6.00. Also, access for disabled and elderly citizens of Mexico City is free.

Tickets are purchased at booths located at every station, and then fed to readers which control the access turnstiles. Used tickets are destroyed within the reader and not returned to the user.

Starting in June 2006, users can purchase a smartcard with prepaid trips, similar to the one used on the Metrobus; the cards are read by optical readers which were installed (at least one on each entrance) beginning in 2004. For the first stage of deployment, the card's cost is MXN $300 for 150 trips; thus, while the initial cost is steep, it's not higher than using tickets for the same number of trips. Authorities plan to offer "empty" cards for a (reported) MXN $20 fee in the future; users can then charge the card with the number of trips they desire, at ticket booths or automated recharging stations.

The first Metro line with 16 stations was opened to the public in 1969. It has expanded since then in a series of fits and starts; it currently comprises eleven lines and 177 kilometres of passenger track.

During rush hour, the trains are constantly serviced by unlicensed vendors selling pirate DVDs and music CDs, as well as large variety of other products. Some lines designate the first two cars of the train for women and children only, though this is only strictly enforced at rush hours.

The Metro has 175 stations, 24 of which serve two or more lines. It has 106 underground stations (the deepest of which are 35 metres below street surface); 53 surface stations and 16 elevated stations. Eleven stations are located in the State of Mexico, while the rest are within the limits of the Distrito Federal.

1 Station logos
2 See also
3 Gallery
4 External links

[edit] Station logos

Metro Zapata

Each station is identified by a unique logo related to the name of the station or the area around it. For example, Metro Zapata, named after Emiliano Zapata, depicts a moustachioed revolutionary wearing a sombrero in green background. On the other hand Metro Pino Suárez, named after another hero of the Revolution, shows the Aztec ruins found during the construction of the station as its symbol.

The logos' background colours reflect those of the line the station serves. Stations serving two or more lines show the respective colours of each line in diagonal stripes. The idea of using logos in addition to names was to assist those passengers who have difficulty reading.