Madrid Metro - Station Design and Setup

Station Design and Setup

Stations in the Madrid metro reveal their age in their design: older stations on the narrow lines are often quite compact, rather like the stations on the Paris Metro. They were decorated with tilings in different colour schemes depending on the station. In recent years, most of these stations have been refurbished with single coloured plates matching those in the newest ones. The stations built between the late 70s and the early 90s are slightly more spacious and most of them have cream colored walls.

On the other hand, the most recent stations are built with space in mind, and are considered amongst the best in the world for their natural-like lighting and ample entryways. The colour scheme varies between stations, using single-colored plates and covering the whole station in light colors. Recently built transfer stations have white walls, but this is not the norm.

Most stations are built with two side platforms, and a handful of them (the busiest transfers) have a central island platform in addition to the side platforms theoretically dedicated to exits. This system was originally used on the Barcelona Metro and is called the Spanish solution. Stations with this setup include:

• Line 2 Cuatro Caminos
• Line 4 Argüelles
• Line 5 Campamento, Carabanchel
• Line 6 Avenida De América, Manuel Becerra, Sáinz De Baranda, Pacífico, Plaza Elíptica, Oporto, Laguna
• Line 7 Avenida De América, Pueblo Nuevo

Some stations have cross-platform interchange arrangement which allows extremely fast transfers between two lines. The only stations with this setup are Príncipe Pío and Casa de Campo . On both occasions, Line 10 uses the outside tracks, so passengers unboarding there leave through the "right" side of the train instead of the usual left side.

In addition, a few stations are built with just one island platform instead of the usual side platforms. These stations are:

• Line 3 Almendrales, Villaverde Alto
• Line 5 Aluche
• Line 8 Campo De Las Naciones, Aeropuerto T4
• Line 9 Rivas Urbanizaciones, Arganda del Rey
• Line 10 Joaquin Vilumbrales

Another system is where there is one island platform with one side platform. This system is used in the stations on Lines 7, 9 & 10 where it is required for passengers to change to smaller trains to continue their journeys, normally to towns outside Madrid like Alcobendas or Coslada. This is done so the island platform can be used for passengers to change easily between trains. These stations are:

• Line 7 Estadio Olimpico
• Line 9 Puerta De Arganda
• Line 10 Tres Olivos