Total investment in the project is 4.5 billion dollars.
San Francisco is currently in the planning stages of an underground extension to a light rail line, named "the central subway", that is about 2km in length, costs 1.5 billion dollars, and has three stations.
Lets see they get in Barcelona for 3 billion dollars more:
- A metro line consisting of 4 branches, 43 km long.
- 46 metro stations
- 16 transfer stations to other modes of transport
- estimated anual ridership of 90 million
One of the coolest things about this project is the way that the subway is being constructed. Enormous tunnel boring machines are being used (12 meters in diameter) allowing trains to run on top of each other. This design allows for minimal additional digging when constructing the stations, as the platforms actually fit inside the tunnel. High speed elevators will shuttle passengers between the platforms and the surface, eliminating the need to dig out anything except the elevator shafts and ventilation ducts.
By leveraging the advantages of tunnel boring machines to create innovative, cost saving, construction methods Barcelona's L9 is clearly a better value than San Francisco's "central subway". I think San Francisco can do a little better with their 1.5 billion dollars....
