Madrid Metro Line 8
From Nuevos Ministerios to Barajas airport in eight stations, stopping at terminals T1-T2-T3 and T4.
About Line 8
Line 8 runs through north-east Madrid, across the districts of Chamartín, Hortaleza and Barajas, linking the Nuevos Ministerios transport hub with all four airport terminals in just eight stations. The stations are far apart and trains reach 105 km/h, the top speed on the main network.
It has few connections: Lines 6 and 10 and Cercanías (Renfe’s commuter-rail network) at Nuevos Ministerios, Line 9 at Colombia and Line 4 at Mar de Cristal. Feria de Madrid serves the IFEMA trade-fair grounds, and Aeropuerto T-4 also has a Cercanías station. Entering or leaving either of the two airport stations costs a supplement; the details are on our metro to the airport page.
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 8
8 stations, 3 of them with an interchange to another line (marked with a ring and the colours of the other lines).
Nuevos Ministerios – Aeropuerto T-4
Main route, 8 stations
History
There was an earlier Line 8: it opened on 9 June 1982 between Fuencarral and Nuevos Ministerios, in time for the World Cup, and reached Avenida de América on 23 December 1986. On 22 January 1998 that section became part of Line 10, leaving the network without a Line 8 for almost six months.
Today’s line was born on 24 June 1998, opened by the King and Queen between Mar de Cristal and Campo de las Naciones. On 14 June 1999 it reached Aeropuerto station, serving terminals 1, 2 and 3, and on 7 September Barajas. On 22 May 2002 the section to Nuevos Ministerios opened with a single intermediate stop, Colombia; Nuevos Ministerios then became an airline check-in point, a service that closed after T4 opened in 2006.
Pinar del Rey, which local residents had campaigned for, opened on 15 January 2007. On 3 May the extension to T4, built under a private concession, arrived, and the old Aeropuerto station was renamed Aeropuerto T1-T2-T3. On 26 June 2017 Campo de las Naciones became Feria de Madrid.
Hours and frequency
On weekdays trains run every 3.5 to 4.5 minutes between 7:30 and 9:30, every 5.5 to 6.5 in the middle of the morning and every 4 or 5 for much of the afternoon. On Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays the interval is 7 to 8 minutes until 15:00 and 5 to 6 afterwards. From 22:00 there is a train every 7.5 minutes and, after midnight, every 15, every day. Stops are also announced in English over the PA.
The trains
Since December 2001 the line has used 8000-series trains running at 1,500 volts — the first line on the network at that voltage. There were originally 10 three-car trains with luggage racks; in 2007 a fourth car was added and four more units came over from MetroSur. Today only four-car trains run, although during the Fitur tourism fair, from 21 to 25 January 2026, six-car 9000-series trains were added to the mix.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, to use the Aeropuerto T1-T2-T3 and Aeropuerto T-4 stations. This is because the section from Barajas to T4 was built under a concession by a private company. The current amount is on our fares page.
Yes. From 1982 to 1998 Line 8 linked Fuencarral with Nuevos Ministerios and, from 1986, with Avenida de América. On 22 January 1998 that route was absorbed into Line 10, and the number passed to the new airport line.
Not any more. From May 2002 the station worked as a check-in point, and suitcases travelled in a sealed compartment on the trains. The system was less popular than expected and, when T4 opened in 2006, it was closed “temporarily” — and has stayed closed ever since.