Salvador (Bahia, Brazil) has an estimated population of 3 million. A metro system is under construction:

Acesso Norte station under construction, autumn 2004 © Raimundo Ribeiro

Acesso Norte station and viaduct near Brotas station under construction, Sept. 2003 © Raimundo Ribeiro

Acesso Norte station under construction, Jan 2003 © Raimundo Ribeiro

Brotas station 2008 © Raimundo Nonato

Lapa station - July 2008 © Raimundo Nonato

Delivery of first Metro car 08 Nov 2008 © Raimundo Nonato

 Projects

Construction of metro line 1 began in April 2000. Opening of the first section was initially scheduled for 2003, but after many delays 2008 is now more likely to be the opening date for the first section from Lapa to Acesso Norte (6 km) of phase 1 as initially intended:

Lapa - Pirajá:

11.9 km (1.4 in tunnel, 4.8 km elevated, rest at grade), 8 stations

International standard gauge, 3kV overhead power supply

Built by a consortium of Siemens and Camargo Corrêa and Andrade Gutierrez of Brazil

Metro will be operated privately for a 25-year period with a fleet of 11 4-car-trains supplied by Siemens

Later, the line might be extended 2.9 km to Pau de Lima. Eventually it should reach Cajazeiras.

Line 2 (east-west) will be 9.4 km long and link the suburban rail terminal at Calçada to the bus station Rodoviária. Later it will be extended by 14.5 km to Mussurunga.

Metro de Salvador (official site) - metro project

Companhia Brasileira de Trens Urbanos (CBTU)

Allen Morrison's Latin America's Metros and Electric City Transport Site