PETERS’ objective was to define the set of priority lines and sections for the expansion of the subway network, carrying out the engineering and operational designs and evaluating the environmental impacts of the works.
The project included modeling the transportation system of the City of Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area to identify priority sections for the future expansion of the network as well as developing the engineering and operational designs for the selected alternative. The amount estimated for the expansion works was 7 billion dollars.
In almost two years of work and with the participation of more than 20 specialists, AC&A studied five alternative networks to extend the current Subway network by about 30 km. The analysis included the projection of travel demand for each line in the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area (AMBA) based on a transportation model of 400 zones. A simulation was conducted including t passenger behavior and the railway, subway and bus networks.
AC&A also carried out technical feasibility studies of routes and stations to ensure the urban insertion of the proposed lines. The study included a medium-term proposal that included the extension and enhancement of the H and C lines. The final recommendation of the study was based on a multi-criteria evaluation.
In 2008, the AMBA had a population of 13 million people and it hosted numerous productive activities. The AMBA concentrated more than 40% of Argentina’s Gross Domestic Product, which made it the main production and consumption center in the country. However, its transportation system, and particularly the subway system, was in a state of degradation due to lack of investment.
It was then that the Government of the City of Buenos Aires made it a priority to expand the network, so it formalized a project with the Inter-American Development Bank whose central objective was the identification and formulation of the priority components of a plan to expand the Subway network; this was to incorporate some 30 kilometers of lines into the 50 km network that would be active upon completion of the works underway on lines A, B, E and H, thus reaching a minimum dimension for its functionality.
The study defined the set of priority lines and sections for the expansion of the network, determined the basic engineering and operational designs, estimated the need for a transit car fleet and evaluated the environmental impact of the works. AC&A also verified the consistency of the current expansion plan and the Urban Environmental Plan (PUA) of the City of Buenos Aires and studied adaptation alternatives.
The PETERS included the following components:
• Collection of information and diagnosis.
• Design of network expansion.
• Demand estimates.
• Study of the service on the new lines.
• Engineering studies.
• Socio-environmental analysis.
• Analysis of economic and financial feasibility and multi-criteria evaluation.
• Construction implementation strategy and equipment provision.
• Financial implementation strategy.
• Operational strategy.
