Valencia's Metro isn’t Really a Metro
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- čas přidán 7. 06. 2024
- Valencia's Metrovalencia is a bit weird - it's a mish mash of light metro, tram, and suburban lines, with a single line extending over to 70 km. But what's so special about this system, and what can it teach the rest of the world about small city metros?
Special thanks to Enrique & Jonathan MacMillan for helping with this video & providing awesome footage!
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Ever wondered why your city's transit just doesn't seem quite up to snuff? RMTransit is here to answer that, and help you open your eyes to all of the different public transportation systems around the world!
Reece Martin (the RM in RMTransit) is an urbanist and public transport critic residing in Toronto, Canada, with the goal of helping the world become more connected through metros, trams, buses, high-speed trains, and all other transport modes.
If you want to learn more about rural trams, watch my video on Tram Trains in Karlsruhe!
czcams.com/video/9sGHqsD0DRM/video.html
Ok
De Kusttram is also a rural tram with no metropole area to serve.
Hi, Valencian here. I just wanted to say 3 things:
1- Metrovalencia emphatises distinguishing between trains and trams on the media. No one calls the tramway "metro" if it does not refer to the company. I think you were confused by the fact that the company running the trains and trams is called METROvalencia.
2- "There are 10 lines but there could be less"- actually the map used to have 5 lines but it was changed (apart as for political reasons so the network looked bigger on the map) into more lines so each line could have just one starting point and one final stop (that way is less confusing).
3- In a few years from now, Metrovalencia will expand its network and change the map so each line is more independent and Adif (public rail infrastructure administrator in Spain, not the same as the Metrovalencia one) will build a giant tunnel through the city and create a new Central Station to remove the Terminus Valencia-Nord station. This tunnel will allow Valencia to have a more propper S-Bahn style railway network finally working together with the new Metrovalencia network. Also, the new tunnel will allow the city to have a giant park and finally the connection between the now divided (by the train tracks) south part of the city.
(4- I'm very proud having such an extensive metro network but let's say it could be better :D)
Will the new tunnel have standard gauge or Iberian gauge?
@@jorgea5426 both of them
@@jorgea5426 both gauges so Valencia can be connected to the rest of Europe through the Mediterranean Corridor
what are they going to do with the main station? València Nord is just gorgeous, I wouldn't want to see service being stopped in the station.
@@eduardpuiggarcia6584 they'll keep the structure (demolishing it would be a murder against the culture, the history and everything) and they'll build a new Station behind it. Maybe it stays as Adif offices.
Im from Valencia and I LOVE the underground system that web hace here, and I spend a lot of hours in my teenage looking for information and studying the history and future of the Metrovalencia, I really love my city's system, and if you need any information about Valencia, or Alicante, I know a lot about It and I'll be pleased of helping you
Tram momento
Its an awesome system! So cool and the complexity adds to the intrigue!
I live in Barcelona, and though we also have a good metro/rail service, busses are also really important. I imagine that's true in Valencia as well?
@@mariaaguadoball3407 It is! But its numbers go a bit too high and the bus map is really hard to read, so I tend to stick to Metrovalència.
@@lua-nya well, here in Barcelona more than 100 lines and the ortogonal system…
I have gotten the impression from some European friends that Valencia is more of a hidden gem, insofar as not being as popular as Madrid or Barcelona. Loved hearing about the transit system of a Spanish city not named Madrid or Barcelona, although as a New Yorker, I did shudder when I heard Santiago Calavatrava.
Santiago Calavatrava was born in Valencia 😅
Valencians also shudder when hearing that name
I'm from Chicago and just came back from Valencia and it truly is a hidden gem. It's the third biggest city in Spain yet 8th most touristy city in Spain. When I visited it, I took the number 7 line and felt extremely safe. The city is extremely safe, unlike Madrid and Barcelona or any other big name city where you have to worry about pickpocketing on public transit or walking.
Don't worry, that happens even to Spaniards.😂
@@JaimePGthats a lie
How can anyone not like Metro system that can easily take you to the airport, Malvarosa beach or Jardin del Turia :)
Big props to Valencia!
Aah but does it stop near the football stadium there? I'm planning to see a La Liga game there!
@@Tonydjjokerit Mestalla?
Absolutelly:)
@@Tonydjjokerit yep, Aragón is your Stop, 50 meters away Mestalla Stadium
@@ivicaignjatovic5890 Thanks and RESPECT Ivica!
@@Satisfyer007 Cheers Jaime! RESPECT!
Valencia was already on my bucket list of places to visit, because of the beautiful architecture. This video has made bumped it up my list a couple of places.
Among the favourite places I’ve ever been. Can recommend!
You absolutely should do it!
I've visited a couple of times & loved it.
It’s so easy to get around without a car. One of the tram lines runs along the beach most of the way so you can even pick your stop in that regard!
I'm from Valencia, if you need any suggestions just tell me. 🙋
Un tío del Canadá hablando del sistema ferroviario de Valencia quien lo iba a decir hace unos años😱
A que flipas eh
As an exchange student in Valencia, I was really hoping you would cover this city. Seeing this video made my day. :)
I am happy to hear it, thats why I make videos :)
Heey, i am also an excahnge student here. And i totally understand your feelings. I feel the same man😆
The end of metro line 10 in a tunnel was not actually meant to be then end of the line. It was originally meant to travel under the old town and come above ground past the riverbed park at the Pont de Fusta tram stop, and then continue north following roughly where line 6 goes. The whole of the tunnel under the city centre wasn't built, which is why line 10 ends in a tunnel and doesn't connect up with the rest of the network. But there is a station that was going to serve the central market, in the tunnel section past the current terminus, but it never opened.
You correctly informed yourself on Valencian metro system and a bit of its history, awesome work. I'm Valencian and I felt that you take that information very professionally
I spent a lot of time in Valencia and whenever I took the metro (not including the trams here) I really noticed its suburban commuter line roots. If you're not staying or living close to one of the city tunnels you probably won't be taking the metro at all. Luckily the city has a huge bus network, with dedicated bus lanes everywhere and an ever growing number of hybrid and electric vehicles in their fleet.
Two things that maybe are interesting for you:
1. The concept of a train going from a rural town into the centre of the big city is called Tren-Tram (Train-Tram). It is also used in Alicante.
2. Apart from the urban tunnel that you mention in the video, there is also a big plan for a new tunnel that will cross under the very heart of valencia (just like Crossrail in London). I think you should look at it if you're interested
Of course! I covered tram trains in my Karlsruhe video!
In Valencia the pure metro lines are not tram lines at all.
A system similar to Alicante might be that of Metro do Porto, in Portugal, where all suburban lines which travel quite a long distance converge In a low flor tram tunnel.
Valencia, instead, operates their metre gauge network in a strict railway operation (like a northern Spain FEVE, but much better)
L9 in Tren-Tram Alacant doesn't even go to the main city, instead it moves people between Denia and Benidorm, which i find super funny!
Porto's metro has a similar system, it operates as tram, metro and suburban train depending of the lines and sections. Also, it was really strange for citizens because they built it all at once, meaning in the late 2000's the entire city was completely torn up for the underground portions, and we went from not having metro to having 6 complete lines in the span of 2 years. At the time it was the largest civil construction project ever in all Europe. I think it is worth a look!
i'm still waiting for a porto or lisbon video :')
The confusion for non Valencians may arise from the fact that the different lines share the same tunnels, so you may have a tunnel which holds like 3 lines and depending on your destination you may end up having to take the second or third metro, not the first. Line numbers are based on the destination and origin, they are not different lines per se. Years ago there were 5 or 6 lines but they decided to duplicate them so the network looks bigger. We have around 28km of tunnels.
Edit: in 6:30 the author of the video deals with this issue
I love talking about Metros. I remember going to Valencia once a few years ago, its such a beautiful city.
There is nothing more I would love though if someone with the expert knowledge of transit looks into the Metro in my home town of Newcastle, north East England. Its like one of only a few cities in the UK to have a Metro and it gets so forgotten about 😭 I love our little trains so much
New trains coming soon of course. About time too because those units are getting on for 45 years old... they appear to have served the network pretty well though.
@@marcelwiszowaty1751 I am very much looking forward to the new trains. I will miss the boxy metros though when they go
as someone who lives in valencia, I appreciate this video.
Valencia Line 10 was an amazing achievement and enables to go to "El Saler" shopping mall, one of the best places to go shopping!
Bilbao has a similar metro/regional rail hybrid with the Euskotren. Within Bilbao it now runs in a metro tunnel, with a high frequency metro service L3, but outside of Bilbao it runs regional style service all the way into France with routes starting with E
And Barcelona with FGC
What do you mean it now runs in a tunnel? Did it used to not run in a tunnel?
@@LightbulbTedbear2 nop ended at Atxurri Terminus, now goes all the way into the city
@@LightbulbTedbear2 well the L3 tunnel is new, there used to be terminal for the lines from the east at Atxuri. Not sure about where the E3 used to terminate
Thank you for this video! My spouse and I are moving to Valencia next month from Cartagena, where we currently live. I have researched the evolution of the MetroValencia system in English and Spanish (and sometimes in Valenciano to see how much I can understand in my soon-to-be home town's own language) and your video helped me synthesize some of the disparate pieces of information I've come across so far. As a transit fan myself, I'm subscribing to your CZcams channel. Thanks again!
Un poco fuera del tema del vídeo, pero si te mudas a Valencia capital dudo que necesites hablar valenciano, a no ser que quieras trabajar de funcionario aquí
i just rode this system a month ago it is a really nice network with funny looking trains but i really liked it thanks for the video
Thanks for watching! Its nice for sure!
Fantastic video. There are so many lessons from a city like Valencia. The network is a little weird, but can be quite useful. We lived in the city center and didn’t use it as much since a tunnel connecting lines is not yet built. Thanks for the love letter to my old city.❤
Thanks for helping and watching afterwards haha!
I agree totally. LRT gets a lot of flack for trying to be to many roles, but I think the sweet spot is smaller cities with ROW through the downtown, long distance service to out lying communities, and frequent service through the downtown due to the compounding routes. Niagara is a city in Ontario I think could apply this particularly well.
*You should also get a look at Toulouse, France's public transportation network! It's bus, light rail, medium haul coach, tram, metro and recently cable car configuration is truly amazing!* (Especially for a city with the population of Raleigh, North Carolina or even Colorado Springs)
Great Video! Valencia and Bilbao (in some sort) are the 2 spanish cities that kinda have it all without huge world cities like Barcelona or Madrid. The good thing about running it all as Metrovalencia is that they have an standard fare, since other places in spain kinda have problems to integrate diferent means of transport (specially for single tickets). Also the reason why everything is branded as the same is because both Metro and Tram lines were created from the former narrow gauge interurban Networks. When the autonomies in Spain were created, Valencia took over the old narrow gauge lines, hence why they operate both Tram and Metro
Yes, the branding makes sense - my critique is in jest!
I can see your idea but Frankfurt is kind of similar in that regard i.e. back in the day, there used to be some trains running from Frankfurt to Oberusel and Bad Homburg which the tram and later the U-Bahn took over and in this system, trams and (pre)metro are clearily separated (the former uses no prefix, the latter a U). Then again, there also is Cologne whose light rail is separated between low-floor (trams) and high-floor (light rail / premetro) vehicles but there is no identification, which one is what.
The fare now includes the buses and local trains too. One ticket, everything covered. At the moment 5.60 for 10 journeys and one Journey constitutes anything within an hour. So if you get the metro then jump on a bus, then onto a tramvia all within an hour that is just one journey. Also for the time being its all free for 30 year olds and under.
Visiting Valencia for first time in November. Excited. Plan on taking metro. Phx,Az has above ground metro,as does Nice,France. Fun to see the beautiful city! Thx for your info.
Love your channel and you talking about my city is very cool! Keep it up with the great content!!
Very thorough and well documented video, loved it.
Thanks and regards from València!
One of the reasons nowadays city is choosing surface branches over undergrounded ones is the extra cost for the second one due to geological reasons. Here, if you dig a little bit, you would find water. Like a LOT. For example, when they built the line to the port because of America's Cup, line it was supposed to be unsergrounded until Neptuno stop (now called Canyamelar-Reina i think). But when they arrived to Ayora station, it was almost impossible to go further. Water water and more water. So they decided to arrive to Serrería and make there a transfer and continue with a tram line. It was that or not be ready on time for America's Cup
Great Video! I grew up in that city and its a pleasent surprise that you talk about the system I've used by all my life.
I'm from Valencia and I think you've explained it quite well. Some things as information for you, like that no one calls the tram “metro”, and that there is a future project to build an intermodal station called “Estación Central”, where you can take a subway, a short and medium distance train , a high-speed train, and at the top of the station, there will be bus and taxi stops. In the gap left by the tracks, a large park and a green corridor will be built to the "Nuevo Cauce", the new river Túria. There are also in project future tram lines, like line 11 and 12. if you need information or help, don't hesitate to tell me. Thank you for showing this great city on your channel
Thanks, three days before I go to Valencia! Great timing! I read that the commuter rail in Spain is now free or very low cost to encourage post(?)-covid ridership. I'll be checking everything out!
Just FYI Metrovalència has somewhat reduced fares but it is not free nor there is a very cheap single payment card with endless travel included like other train services. If you want some extra info maybe I can explain.
@@1312_PV yes, I'd like any information you have! I'm staying for a week... what's the best plan to pay for exploring the metro and commuter trains? Also, what is the Valencian word for railfan? Or a Castilian one? In case someone in authority asks why I'm looking at everything 🤣
@@KFCJones Rodalies, the commuter train line in Valencia is now free, but only for recurring passengers such as workers or students. If you're going to frequently use public transportation around the city you should get the Suma card, I would recommend the Suma 10, which gives you 10 trip passes with a free transshipment each, you can get Zone A for 5.30 or B and C which are more expensive, depending on how far you need to travel (zone C is only the airport). It also works for all metropolitan buses and Rodalies for some towns in the metropolitan area
I just rode a few lines of this system in July and was impressed with how well it stitches together otherwise isolated parts of the city. I would also like to see your take on the Alicante system(s), and what Malaga's fledgling two-line metro has in store for the future. Thanks for one of the best channels on CZcams!
Thanks, Reece for covering MetroValencia!. We go to Valencia (by far our favorite city that we've ever visited!) yearly and use MV heavily. It's a great system. BTW, I remember suggesting that you to look into it, and my wish came true!
Every time I watch one of these videos I remember that from a North American perspective I live in a mid-sized European city and therefore I should have access to some good public transport. It's a real expectation vs reality situation. Granted, I live a 5 minute walk from a railway station, but it's served by DMUs at a 30-minute frequency and it's usually more convenient to cycle.
Okay, now *you need* to make a video about the Porto Metro, which was heavily inspired by this system heheh
On god.
In Valencia you can enjoy perhaps the longest garden in Europe, with 6 or 7 kilomters and we call it "the river / el río". It cross some neighborhoods and you can walk, run, walk dogs, ride bike, etc.
hmmm...very interesting portrayal of Valencia rail networks. I've never been to Spain, but should the opportunity present itself
I shall definitely be visiting Valencia on the Mediterranean coast. Thanks for your analytical railway videos. Much appreciated!
Excellent video Reece. Shows what a good idea it is to not be too dogmatic about transit applications.
Wow amazing video, still waiting for the barcelona´s full metro-tram system. Keep up the good work!
I want to, need to find some locals first!
@@RMTransit local and transit fan here!
WOW! You did a video of my city's metro! Thanks xd
Thanks for watching!
I've been waiting for this forever
Valencia's "Metro" reminds me of the German "U-Bahn's" in Stuttgart, Frankfurt and Koln. All three systems use light rail trams running through the center of town underground and surface lines in the suburbs. I guess it all boils down to what term you want to use - Strassenbahn -vs- untergrundbahn.
The Köln system is slightly confusing because *officially* it is designated a U-Bahn. However it is often referred to as a Stadtbahn. In reality it is neither because it is indeed very similar to that of Valencia.
Not too familiar with the other two, but Stuttgart hasn’t been using trams for a few years now. They exclusively use metro style vehicles, but they do have quite few level crossings and median running inside the city. Though no mixed traffic running and a lot of short tunnels skipping under high traffic areas. It’s quite a nice system though.
Karlsruhe would be the much closer example to what you described.
It too reminded me of these cities, though I'd only count Cologne as a proper example of another Valencia-like system because there are no separations between the low-floor and high-floor lines while Frankfurt never -abolished- updated its trams into the U-Bahn completely and thus both modes are clearily separated and Stuttgart replaced its trams completely with high-floor vehicles.
Valencia, Spain = the valorous, founded for the soldiers of Rome.
Dublin in Ireland, built its light rail disconnected, with a 1km gap between them. And we’re joined a decade or so after first opening.
The Valencia river was diverted to be a highway originally🤦♂️ Then they later converted it to be a park. It’s my favorite park about the city! So much happening there. It’s such a great place to go for a bike ride or go for a run
Thanks for talking about my city, u did a great work :)
Great video Reece
incredible video!! i like that you talk about the mix about the metro going out and in the ground as something 'confusing' , more because that was surprising for me as a Valencian myself to hear. I dont know if anyone really considers that as something problematic at the time to navigate around in the metro, it really just offers us more posibilities to go from one point of the city to another, I guess it was just funny to hear you say that! And why less lines when the network can help you move more easily? in the next years theyre actually going to expand the network and it something super exciting! for us inside the city center and above all for those who live in the nearest towns or outside the city
Thank you Reece from Roger Sexton for an absolutely superb video which has vastly improved my understanding of the Valencia transit system. Interestingly I was immediately struck by the similarity between the Valencia 'Metro' high-floor lines and the Zurich 'S-Bahn'. Both networks have city centre tunnel sections but also rural (single-track) sections running far out into the country. (Zurich S-Bahn is almost entirely standard guage, but the Berne S-Bahn has three metre guage lines S7-S9 to the north and east of the city which are somewhat analogous to Valencia. These Berne metre guage lines are run not by SBB but by Regionalbahn Bern-Solothurn.)
Thanks for watching Roger, yeah they remind me of each other too, its odd haha
Very interesting! This gives me some ideas about building on the streetcar system in Kansas City. We don't necessarily have to spend billions on a heavy rail subway or try to convince the freight companies to let us share track for a few commuter trains - we could take the existing streetcar system and create elevated, tunneled, or exclusive right-of-way sections to expand it out further.
Great video. Being from Ireland, I’ve so much envy when I see what other regional European cities are doing and Dublin still hasn’t an airport connection or a metro system
Isn’t Dublin working on a light rail link to the airport ?
@@japanesetrainandtravel6168 apparently a metro but they’ve been taking about it since 2007 so I’ve little faith. If they do complete it, it won’t be any earlier than the 2030s. Disgraceful for one of richest countries in Europe, if not the world
@@sams3015 have they started construction yet?
@@japanesetrainandtravel6168 as far I know, they haven’t
@@japanesetrainandtravel6168 “On Saturday 17th September, a newspaper notice was published in the Irish Times and Irish Independent, outlining our intention to lodge a Railway Order Application with An Bord Pleanála on or after 30th September 2022”
Great video. I visited Valencia and was very impressed by it's Metro and train system, mainly because I did not expect any! It is modern and clean and connects you throughout the city. Man, wouldn't it be great to have something like that in Las Vegas so I could hop on in Summerlin and off at the Bellagio;-)
7:45 That station, with its finished over track area, looks absolutely awesome.
Great video Reece. Can you think of a city in the GTA that could have their bus system partially replaced by Valencia’s combo of light rail/tram and light metro? I feel Mississauga is growing fast enough where Dundas St, and Burthamthorpe could benefit from such a system followed by transit oriented development .
As someone from peel, I'd say so. Although I'd love to see a circumferential GO line, perhaps connecting Peel region to York region, and beyond on either side. (Maybe by upgrading the existing rail line alongside the 407) Once the GTA gets true RER, it will be a lot more feasible to throw more tram/light metro/metro all around, imho.
Miss for sure! Especially since Line 5 and Hurontario are already happening!
@@holygooff greater toronto area not grand theft auto
@@jailenmodi2364 Although, we do have lots of auto theft issues. 😂
Back in the early 60s, my family went on vacation to Valencia. They had old streetcar lines on very narrow streets, so the rail lines were interlaced in places. (Kind of like parts of Lisbon). I thought that was awesome.
Oslo also had a split rail network, both for its metro system and its trains. They have since been connected, but the connexions are at capacity and more capacity is needed.
You should look on how Porto's Metro system works in Portugal. Its actually very similar the way it works compared with Valencia Metro, and the two cities are comparable in size too.
I lived in valencia during 2020 and there was no Line 10 of the metro service which I used to complain about, I was so impressed when i came back this year and saw that they had already built the whole new metro line with brand new stations and a tunnel. Things actually happen and move faster over there compared to the UK
Very nice and comprehensive coverage! I'd be interested to see you talk about Granada's metro. It's very concentrated along a single axis (since it's just the one line) but it's still got loads of usage! It's kind of weird cause depending on where you live you can just never use it at all, but for a lot of other people it's part of their daily routines. Seems like a good example of finding specific corridors with lots of demand and serving them well. Granada's also got an impressively reliable bus network imo.
que fumas, guiri
@@SamurangCriticineGoGin pero qué dices de guiri, anda vete a hacer parkour o "explorar" una nave industrial y dejame en paz.
Just from the start this reminds me a lot of Cologne Stadtbahn! The mix of LRT, Metro and regional rail is real here as well, but both low floor LRVs (the last tram line was shut down in 2006) and high floor LRVs serve all of those purposes at once
Great video
Very similar is the metrosystem of the portuguese city Porto. It had a meter gauge suburban railway that was transformed in a standard gauge metro that also runs nowadays beneath the citycenter. This city has also the unique standard gauge tram in Portugal, however it needs to be modernized.
thanks for finally talking about us, I suggested it for a long time ahaha
Reece, this was very interesting. What a novel network.
Speaking of Houston, which you mentioned (and how strange we are here 👀), I could go on all day about our transit and some quirks (charitable wording) of our city layout
Great video!
Alternate title: "Reece nerds out on Valencia's transit network"
Building transit at a low cost is something we need to be doing here - why is it that our subways and LRTs cost billions and go (cough LA cough) 6 years late, while Europe can afford these transit networks? /sigh
Without knowing the answer I would guess it has to do with ignoring NIMBYs, experience in building these lines, and use of existing tracks (pushing freight to other routes)
@@neolithictransitrevolution427 Probably also politics - there is no reason for Eglinton West LRT (in Toronto) to be tunneled
Valencia's secret is not building much from scratch. A lot of the lines have their origin in the 19th and early 20th century metre-gauge Trenet (small train) that have been transformed, resurrected and/or extended.
@@tucuuk But there is a lot pre-existing in North America also. Most of it is converted into either trails or used for frieght, but the policy around usage is just as relevant as it exisiting
Its a great network! Easy to nerd out on it haha!
6:35 The core question is: what is a line ... I think New York and London are two extremes.
London is communicating line names like "District Line" or "Central Line" but these lines have very different branches and without knowing about the structure of the network you can easily end up on the wrong train, so you need to know the services. New York City is heavily communicating the numbers and letters system though grouping those with a color code but interlined sections also have their names like "Eighth Avenue Line". Both systems need a second layer of information.
I think a good scheme would use a structured numbering scheme that does already include the structure. In smaller networks main routes could have single digit numbers and the short service could use that number increased by 10. In the Berlin S-Bahn network there are ring lines S41/S42 (counter-/clockwise) and lines S45/S46/S47 serve the Southeast of the city and then continue via the Southern ring - here line numbers adress the individual service but the left digit of the line number is grouping the line. In the current Valencia network line 5 could easily be renamed to line 37 as it currently just interlines with lines 3 in the West and 7 in the East. Transport operators should just stop numbering the ideas in the sequence in which they come up or can be realized. The order in which lines were built does not help with orientation - a line number should tell what the line is doing.
In a transport network a passenger (tourist or commuter) may have the capacity to learn third of the network he should details and which two thirds he should roughly know about - if the network is communicated in a well-structured way the passenger can identify the relevant third quickly.
Honestly, this needs to be a video
@@RMTransit Karlsruhe S-Bahn ist a network that is doing this very well, especially with lines S7, S8, S71, S81 with the single-digit-lines through the downtown tunnel and the double-digit-lines terminating at central station while 7+71 and 8+81 sharing a terminus in the region.
Once you decide to use double-digit numbering why not use all kinds of numbers between S1 and S99 to actively reduce complexity. This would also work on the Stockholm Metro where the yellow line could use numbers 27 and 28 depending on which Southern branch of the green line its branches interline with. This would give passengers a code for the right digit as well.
Hi Reece, loved the video, since I was a kid i always liked transit. If could make a video about Lisbon i would appreciated it very much, you could talk about the boats in which thousands of commuters travel everyday with frequencies reaching to 5 minutes apart in the rush hours. Thank you
Hi from a Valencian. I still have somewhere a 4-trip ticket my grandad and me used when the first underground tunnel was inaugurated
Thank you!
I’m very happy my beloved city’s transport gets acknowledged. It has always been a very useful service even considering the difficulties of the project (keep in mind that Valencia is by the sea, which means that the tunnels used to flood every time they where built, and we still have kilometers of tunnels that are completely unusable because of this)
I think it’s perfect for the size of the city, and now that we’re adding new lines, we’re looking at a future with less dependence on cars, which were necessary for many zones of the metropolitan area.
Can't believe you haven't shown the main station. It's a beautiful building with iconic orange-themed Art Nouveau tilings. Orange, the fruit. There are oranges everywhere in this station.
And yeah it's called "North Station" despite the fact that trains leaving it goes straight south, then makes a U turn inside the mentioned tunnel.
Trivia: it's called "North Station" because it belonged to the "North Company" (Compañía de los Caminos de Hierro del Norte de España) back before the nationalization of the train companies in 1941. The red star in the facade was the symbol of that company. And yes, it's a beautiful building 🥰
Vancouver daydream moment here: I've always wondered if it would be possible to integrate a sort of dual-motor train to the SkyTrain system, one that can be driven by both the existing linear motors as well as on-board electric motors powered by overhead lines or electrified rail. What with the troubles of renting track time from the rail companies being an issue, the old electric interurban line to the valley a talking point that comes up every now and then, and the cost of above or below-grade construction, what if the SkyTrain got a hybrid car and an at-grade transition out in the suburbs that allowed for an hourly interurban train that ran straight into the downtown core?
This is the second weirdest Tram/metro system in Spain The Alacant Tram system is weirder
Indeed, orders of magnitude weirder and from my first hand experience mostly in a bad way.
Thx for the video 😉
Can you investigate on the Lausanne - Switzerland metro and make a video ?
I loved your video! Please review also Bilbao's transport system and its weird metro line 3
Great analysis! I also recommend visit the Estació del Nord, quite close to everywhere and amazingly beautiful
Great video, as always! You should take a look at the Gothenburg tram network, the largest tram network in Northern Europe.
Wow!! That's my hometown!
5:02 That's Sagunt stop, I always take the tram to the university there
If you want to look into weird transit systems in smaller citys, i can tell you a bit about Karlsruhe (Germany). Their trams/suburban trains run quite far into the countryside, while keeping to the tram/streetcar tracks inside the city. They are compatible with the usual train tracks as well, and in some places are able to stop in bigger stations alongside intercity trains. Always looks funny to see a tram doing 100kph next to cargo trains when in the vicinity.
And by the way, the trams in Stuttgard also run into tunnels below the central station and city center - nothing wrong with that!
I think he made a video about Karlsruhe
The smaller city that I was surprised to see a metro system is Lausanne in Swiss. A city with less than 200K inhabitants and 2 metros lines, one Tram line (another tram in construction).
I'm surprised a city of less than 900k people has such an extensive network. 160km of track!
Oh boy, we need a video about Hannover, Germany, the central area tunnelled tram system is just amazing
Impressive video Bro! In fact my old city of Newcastle-upon-Tyne is planning something very similar! What Valencia is what I would class as a hybrid system. It is not the finished article yet but will evolve into 2 systems over time! But if you want a really weird system, try Charleroi in Belgium! Now THAT is weird!
Anyone remember Sydney, that place Reece just covered? Electrified trains from the suburban extents run every 20min minimum into the city centre by tunnelling under the city. :D
(nevermind the part where a breakdown/signal failure in the tunnels shuts down half/the whole system. :)
Love your videos! Think you could do one on Hannover's üstra Stadtbahn? I think it's pretty remarkably successful for how car-centric Hannover used to be in the 70s.
In Hannover there'd also be another example of turning regional services into S-Bahn Services (S5 for example).
In general I think it may be better to treat metro and SBahn in the same video, because only together they form a comprehensive network. That's why for example Hamburg uses an USAR plan, with both metro and Sbahn on it, and not separate plans
I want to do Hannover, its on the list!
dude this just reminded me of the good times when i lived in valencia
Can you do a video on how Metrolinx operates? I'm from Edmonton and read about the Eglinton delay and first heard they're a provincial transit provider. I think Alberta could use something similar, so it would be nice to hear about the details.
Discussing million person metropolises, not just ten million person ones, is useful I think. Even half million person Oslo has a nice system, including an underground central tunnel that all the lines pass through. What a smaller metropolis needs and wants is different than that of a city ten times larger. And can be quite nice.
Another fabulous European city showing us North Americans what's possible in public transit. Bravo Valencia! And kudos to Reece for another interesting video.
Great video and a really interesting approach that I think it is well thought out and serves the population well. Sure if looks on the surface (and in the tunnels!!!) like a miss mash of different types of transit but if it works then surely that's ok, right? It also looks as though the newer parts of the network have been built with a view of expansion in mind, which surely can't be a bad thing. I would love to see a video on the transit network in the Basque cities of San Sebastian and Bilbao that when I was there I found intriguing and was affectionately called El Topo (the mole) I believe.
I live in Valencia and i promise that knowing which metro you should hop in is not as hard as it seems!
Salt Lake City actually has a decent rail network with light rail and commuter rail. Look at the map and it's a pretty robust network.
Alicante system runned by FGV (same company) is called TRAM but some lines are underground
It’s great to see some Spanish representation. Unfortunately my city only has a tram line (which to be fair is pretty well designed and well used) and a practically useless commuter rail, which has an hourly service through the city center tunnel and a ridership of under 300.000 people a year. This is a big city (Zaragoza) with a metropolitan area of over 800.000 people.
The heavy interlining issue is one that I am very familiar with. I grew up in a city of about 200k people. It has 4 tram/light rail lines, one of which was added during my childhood. The Trains on those lines are very similar to the low floor trams you see in this video and also run on 900mm narrow gauge. 4 Lines however, does not mean 4 rail corridors or separate infrastructure.
All 4 lines use ONE corridor through the city center along the main pedestrianized shopping street.
Lines 1 and 2 have the same terminus station in the north, the University, and the only distinction between them in the south is that one branches off into a line with 2 stations before terminating and the other one runs pretty far out into the suburbs.
Lines 3 and 4 share much of the same fate. They share a northern terminus at a regional rail line and within 3 stations merge into the main corridor. At the main train station Lines 3 and 4 split off to the west and the ONLY distinction is that line 3 stops about 10 stops earlier than the other line.
You might think that Valencia has a bad naming system with all it's interlining. The city I grew up in (Linz, Austria) has about 1 and a half Lines with 2 small branches while pretending that it has 4 lines. Now THAT is true line naming madness. There is even a line numbered line 50, which is a half hour service, uses much smaller trams, uses the same corridor as the others, but only to the main square, then runs up a local mountain along a historic, recently rebuilt rail corridor to an old castle, a corridor which is mostly single tracked. It's mostly a tourist line.
The city's transport isn't bad, by the way. Not good compared to say, the city I currently live in, which has 7 actual tram lines that use actually different corridors for the most part. But Linz does have a comprehensive bus network with double bendy trolley buses thrown in the mix, and some good regional rail service that connects to THE main rail corridor in the country with 4 or 5 trains an hour leaving to Vienna alone.
Very good video, you should do one on the Brisbane Metro in Australia, that one’s a bit interesting…
Can you speak about the U-Bahn Hamburg Germany, the system is getting a major extension in the near future?
You rock.
Check out Panama's future plans for 8 lines of metro, we use the same trains as Barcelona and there's plans to make a tram in the dense historic quarter and two light brt lines through our the two main avenues of the city, another reason our transport systems are interesting is that the form of our city is very enlarged on the sides and thin side to side
I went to Valencia recently and to be fair it was really easy to travel on the valencia metro :)
Could you maybe do a video on the transit of the twin cities on Minnesota and the use of mixed light rails and brt and like the future of the transit around the area
Valencia is great for transportation. I lived there for two years and there are metros, Valenbici, trams, and buses! Frecuency is good, and never had a problem.