The Monorail System along the M’Boi Mirim Avenue may be converted into a Subway Line

São Paulo City Hall plans to push another public transport project to be the responsibility of the State Government. City Mayor Gilberto Kassab, from the Democratic Party (DEM), yesterday announced another change in plans for the region of M’Boi Mirim, in the South Zone of São Paulo. The original project was that of a bus rapid transport system, then it became a project for a monorail project (until then an exclusive responsibility of the municipality), and it will now be transformed into a new Subway Line.

This is the third bus-corridor project announced by the current local administration which ended up being converted into a Subway project. The first was the project known as the Tiradentes Express (Expresso Tiradentes), formerly the Queue Cutter (Fura-Fila), which has now become an extension to Line 2 (Green Line) of the São Paulo Subway System. The first three stations will be opened next year, and the line will finally arrive in Cidade Tiradentes by 2014. Another project which has been similarly altered is the corridor along Celso Garcia Avenue, which will also be operated by the Subway, although this project is still in study stage.

It is important that an administration must not be concerned with putting its name on a commemorative plaque, Mr Kassab said yesterday morning. If they do have this concern, as was unfortunately the case in the past, then we will not construct major work which is important for the city. I say this with a lot of humility, Mr Kassab explains. In his opinion, the investments that the City Hall has made in the Subway will help this project to get off the ground.

The project came about in the form of a bus corridor project over 10 km, and later, in July 2009, became a monorail line of 34 km. A contract  for a total of R$ 45 million (€ 19.55 million) was signed last year but must now be disregarded. The Municipal Secretariat for Transport has informed that these funds have not yet been invested.

The State Government has informed, by a statement, that there will be a meeting thereof with the City Hall over the next few days, to discuss mobility projects in São Paulo. The transport solution for the M’Boi Mirim area will surely be discussed by the City Hall, the Municipal Secretariat for Transport has informed.