Metro Riel

Metro Riel
Illustration showing what a light rail car on the proposed MetroRiel system might look like
Overview
Locale	Guatemala City, Guatemala
Transit type	Light rail
Number of lines	1
Number of stations	20
Daily ridership	250,000 (projected) [1]
Technical
System length	21 km (13.0 mi)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge

Metro Riel is a light rail line proposed for Guatemala's capital, Guatemala City.

Background

In October 2016, it was reported that Spanish consulting engineer IDOM conducted a feasibility study into a 20-kilometre (12 mi) light rail system for Guatemala City, evaluating the cost at $770 million.^{[ clarification needed ] [2]} Journeys between the two termini of the line would take around 40 minutes at a commercial speed of 30 km/h (19 mph) on a largely segregated alignment. ^[3] The project was then shelved, but revisited in 2018. ^[4]

In April 2019, the Guatemalan national competition agency Pronacom and public private partnership promotion agency Anadie began seeking a consultant for an advanced design study for Metro Riel. ^[5]

Construction

In 2019, the municipality of Guatemala City signed an agreement with the country’s railway infrastructure manager Ferrovías to use an abandoned heavy rail alignment for the project. ^[6]

Preliminary construction works began in 2024, with a targeted opening of the first phase in mid-2027. ^[7]

References

1. "METRO RIEL IN GUATEMALA". IDOM. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
2. "Guatemala City will tender $700m light rail scheme by 2017". 31 October 2016. Archived from the original on 15 November 2016.
3. "Guatemala City light rail study completed". 25 November 2016.
4. "Urban Train Project Revived". CentralAmericaData.com. 17 July 2018.
5. "Guatemala launches tender for light rail studies". BNAmericas. 1 April 2019.
6. "Guatemala City LRT right-of-way agreement signed". 31 July 2019. Retrieved 31 July 2019.
7. "Arrancan trabajos: así será la primera fase del Metro en Guatemala (video)". www.soy502.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 2026-01-11.