Madrid Metro Line 3
From Moncloa to El Casar, in Getafe: it runs down via Princesa, Sol and Legazpi to Villaverde and connects with MetroSur.
About Line 3
Line 3 has 19 stations. It starts at Plaza de la Moncloa, runs the full length of Calle de la Princesa to Plaza de España, continues along Gran Vía and turns at Callao towards Calle de Preciados and Sol. From there it heads south through Lavapiés, Miguel Servet, Palos de la Frontera and Paseo de las Delicias, crosses the Manzanares river under the Puente de Andalucía bridge and runs along Avenida de Córdoba and Avenida de Andalucía to Villaverde Alto. The last section passes under the M-45 ring road to reach El Casar.
At Moncloa and Argüelles you can change to the circular line, as you can at Legazpi; at Sol, to Lines 1 and 2; at Callao, to Line 5; and at El Casar, to Line 12. There are Cercanías commuter-rail connections at Sol, Embajadores, Villaverde Alto and El Casar.
Length: the sum of the distances between consecutive stations published by the Consorcio Regional de Transportes de Madrid (CRTM) in its open data (network routes, updated on 29 May 2026), in one direction and counting every section of the line. It measures from the first station to the last, without the track that continues beyond the termini, so other published figures for the length of the line may be higher. Neither Metro de Madrid nor the CRTM publishes an official length for each line.
Stations on Line 3
19 stations, 7 of them with an interchange to another line (marked with a ring and the colours of the other lines).
El Casar – Moncloa
Main route, 19 stations
History
Work between Sol and Embajadores began in the summer of 1934 and kept running into underground water: the deepest shaft, at Plaza de Jacinto Benavente, flooded, and on Calle de Preciados the houses had to be shored up. The line opened on 9 August 1936, in the middle of the Civil War, and its tunnels stayed open at night as air-raid shelters. The extension to Argüelles opened on 15 July 1941.
Shortages of materials delayed the southern section: Delicias opened on 26 March 1949 and Legazpi on 1 March 1951. On 17 July 1963 the line reached Moncloa, with the aim of relieving the E bus and better serving people travelling to the university campus (Ciudad Universitaria).
Between 2003 and 2006, in summer works, the platforms were lengthened from 60 to 90 m, lifts were installed at every station and the ticket halls were rebuilt; at Moncloa the terminus was dug out again. This prepared the way for the extension of 21 April 2007, which added six stations from Almendrales to Villaverde Bajo-Cruce. The latest extension, 2.5 km long, started construction on 8 February 2022 and, after several delays caused by hard ground and water seepage, opened to El Casar on 21 April 2025.
Hours and frequency
At weekday rush hour, between 7:30 and 9:30, there is a train every 2 to 3 minutes; around midday, every 4 or 5; and in the afternoon, every 3 or 4. On Saturdays the interval is 7 to 8 minutes early in the morning, falling to 3.5-4.5 minutes from 17:00; on Sundays it is 4 to 5 in that same period. Almendrales has four tracks: two are sidings for the extra trains that reinforce the peak service between Moncloa and Legazpi, but the service is continuous and you never have to change trains. After midnight, Sunday to Thursday, there is a train every 15 minutes.
The trains
For the 1936 opening, CAF first built eight cars, an order later raised to 16 because of the planned extension; the electric motors were made by Geathom. The 2003 to 2006 refurbishment brought new 3000-series units, designed for the six-car trains that the 90 m platforms allow. At Callao and Embajadores the rails were left flush with the floor, with the sleepers covered in concrete.
Frequently asked questions
No. When it became known that AlmendralesES would have four tracks, people feared the line would be split in two, like Lines 7, 9 and 10. The 2007 opening confirmed that trains run the whole route: the tracks without platforms are only used to park extra trains.
At El CasarES, in Getafe, which opened on 21 April 2025 and has interchanges with Line 12 and Cercanías. A service tunnel was also built to link the two lines, used by maintenance vehicles.
Because it is the only line in the network to have been fully remodelled. Between 2003 and 2006 its look, layout and safety were updated, it was made accessible with lifts at every station, and its capacity was increased ahead of the demand expected from the 2007 extension to the south.