ML1 light rail (Metro Ligero 1)
A nine-station light-rail line between Pinar de Chamartín and Las Tablas, via Virgen del Cortijo and Sanchinarro.
About the ML1 light-rail line
Metro Ligero Line 1, or ML1, has nine stations, five of them underground, in the districts of Hortaleza, Fuencarral-El Pardo and Ciudad Lineal. The whole line is in zone A. It links the Pinar de Chamartín neighbourhood, the Virgen del Cortijo estate and the newer developments of Sanchinarro and Las Tablas.
At Pinar de ChamartínES you can change to Lines 1 and 4, and at Las TablasES to Line 10. It comes to the surface on Calle del Príncipe Carlos, where Antonio Saura and Álvarez de Villaamil stand, and again at Palas de Rey and on the final stretch to Las Tablas.
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 the ML1 light-rail line
9 stations, 2 of them with an interchange to another line (marked with a ring and the colours of the other lines).
Pinar de Chamartín – Las Tablas
Main route, 9 stations
History
Construction began in December 2004 and the whole line opened on 24 May 2007 at 6:00, with all nine stations in use from day one and no built stations left waiting to open. The budget for its two sections was €262.5 million.
The route starts beneath Calle de Arturo Soria, runs under Avenida de Manuel Azaña, the depot next to the M-11 motorway and the Manoteras industrial estate, and crosses Virgen del Cortijo before entering Sanchinarro. After the surface stops on Príncipe Carlos it goes back underground at Blasco Ibáñez and María Tudor, continues beneath Avenida de Niceto Alcalá Zamora, passes under the Autovía del Norte motorway and enters Las Tablas.
The 30-year concession belongs to Metros Ligeros de Madrid, owned by ALSA Rail and Caja Madrid, which subcontracts the operation to Metro de Madrid.
Hours and frequency
On weekdays the peak runs from 7:00 to 10:00, with a tram every 4.5 to 5.5 minutes; in the middle of the morning the interval rises to 8 or 9 minutes, and in the afternoon it comes down again, to 5.5-6.5 Monday to Thursday and 4.5-5.5 on Fridays between 14:00 and 16:00. On Saturdays there is one every 8 or 9 minutes from 8:00, and on Sundays and public holidays every 11.5 to 12.5 from 9:00. The first hour of service has intervals of 14.5 to 17.5 minutes; Monday to Thursday, from 22:00, there is one roughly every 15 minutes, and after midnight every 20.
The trains
The line uses fully low-floor Alstom Citadis trams, with a top speed of 70 km/h and power from overhead wire at 750 volts. They run as five-module sets, which could be lengthened to seven if demand required, and they run on the right — unlike the rest of the metro — so as not to obstruct road traffic.
Frequently asked questions
It belongs to the Metro Ligero (light-rail) network and uses light-rail vehicles — Citadis trams — but most of its route is in tunnel, with tunnels similar to those of the narrow-profile metro. Five of its nine stations are underground.
The rest of Metro de Madrid runs on the left, but the ML1 runs on the right so as not to obstruct traffic. It is one of the ways it differs from the conventional metro, along with its fully low-floor trams and overhead wire at 750 volts.
The concession holder is Metros Ligeros de Madrid, S.A., owned by ALSA Rail and Caja Madrid, with a 30-year concession. Even so, it subcontracts day-to-day operation to Metro de Madrid.