Financing for First Line of the Quito Metro (PLMQ)
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) today announced the approval of a $200 million loan for the construction of a metro system in the city of Quito, Ecuador, which will improve urban mobility and address the growing demand for public transportation and for an integrated city wide public transport system.
The construction of the First Line of the Quito Metro (PLMQ) is expected to be completed by 2016 and will transport 360,000 passengers per day, which will represent an 11 percent increase. Within two years PLMQ is expected to shorten by 15 minutes the travel time required to cross the city. This means $68 million saved thanks to lower public service operating costs, as well as betterconnectivity, more safety, and greater comfort over ofthe current system. Greenhouse and pollutant emissions are to be cut by 25 million tons per year, a figure that will increase over time. It will also provide improved access for people with physical limitations, the elderly and families.
The program is structured around the following components: civil works, facilities, and expropriations; rolling stock and technical assistance for project execution.
“The First Line of the Quito Metro will be a fast, efficient way to transport around 360,000 people every day to their destinations along the 23 kilometers of the first line,” said Rafael Acevedo-Dunas, the IDB’s project team leader. “It will connect with other public transportation hubs to cut travel time and congestion, resulting in a significant increase in the quality of life of its citizens.”
Quito, home to 2.4 million people, has seen a significant increase in motorized vehicles in the last eight years with the number of cars more than doubling from 175,000 in 2002 to 405,300 in 2009, an average annual increase of 10 to 16 percent. There are now nearly 200 cars per 1,000 inhabitants.
The planned routing for the system will connect the city’s main travel hubs. These include the “Y” where the trolley line (the line’s starting point) intersects with the central BRT corridor, and the Central Bank, where three of Quito’s main transportation systems converge: Quito’s trolley, Ecovía, and central-north corridor.
The distance between metro stations will range from 500 meters to 1,500 meters, and the mean operating speed of the trains will be 40 km per hour.
Currently there are more than four million trips made daily using motorized vehicles, of which nearly a quarter are by private car (including taxis), while three out of every four trips are on public transportation.
The IDB financing has an amortization period of 25 years, a grace period of 13.5 year grace period and a variable interest rate based on LIBOR.