First underground line will be ready at start of 2007

THE first underground line in Palma will be ready to use in the first few months of 2007, said the Minister for Public Works, Housing and Transport, Mabel Cabrer, yesterday at a press conference. This first line will connect the centre of Palma from Plaza España with the Balearic Island University (UIB) in just 12 minutes. The stops on the way, which will be newly created, will be Plaza España, Jacint Verdaguer, Son Oliva, carretera de Bunyola, Asima, Son Castello industrial estate, Cami dels Reis and Son Sardina. Work to build the underground lines up to Son Oliva are currently underway, as well as the construction of the Intermodal underground station.
The underground has been designed to reach a maximum speed of 100 kilometres per hour, said the Minister, who added that approximately 3 million people will use the underground service within the first year of operation. The Mayor of Palma, Catalina Cirer, thanked the Balearic Government for “their important economic efforts” to improve the transport infrastructures in Palma. In this way “the quality of life will be improved for many residents who daily have to travel to the Son Castello industrial estate and the University” she added. The Rector of the University, Avel-li Blasco, expressed his “great satisfaction” for this project on behalf of all the workers and students at the University, as every day there are traffic problems to reach the campus, he said.