PORTUGAL: A project to build the first new tramway in central Lisboa for more than 60 years has been formally launched at a ceremony held in the Parque das Nações.
Branded as tram line 16, this forms part of the city’s LIOS programme to create a new set of mass transit routes linking neighbourhoods poorly served by the existing tram and metro networks. Route 16 will connect Terreiro do Paço in the city centre with Parque Tejo in Loures, a distance of 12 km.
The alignment will be dedicated solely for use by trams on Route 16. Trams will run through from Cais do Sodré to Parque das Nações Norte, complementing the existing riverside Route 15, which runs between Cais do Sodré and Algés.
Being developed at a cost of €160m, the link will serve 18 stops along the riverside. These will include the main cruise ship terminal, Santa Apolónia station —which will be served by trams after a hiatus of more than three decades — Rotunda da Colômbia, Parque Tejo and Parque das Nações Norte. There, passengers will be able to interchange with a planned 8 km bus rapid transit route that will serve destinations in the district of Loures. Together, the tram line and BRT route are expected to cut peak hour journey times between Loures and central Lisboa from around 60 min currently to 35 min.
Municipal operator Carris expects to deploy the CAF Urbos low-floor trams it received in 2023-24 on Route 16 when it fully opens in 2028.
Final environmental assessments for the project are ongoing, with civil works expected to start in 2027.
