Recently, the Santiago Batuco commuter railway project in Chile has made significant progress. The Chilean National Railway Company has reached an important cooperation agreement with China Railway Construction Group Corporation and its subsidiaries CR22 and CRCEB's Greater Andes Construction Company consortium, pressing the accelerator button for this railway line that carries the hope of urban transportation transformation.

EFE has signed a contract worth $470 million with the Grand Andes Construction Company consortium to construct the northern section of a $950 million project. The northern section will build a 26 kilometer commuter railway line extending from north of Santiago to Batuco. The construction of the northern section from Mapocho to Batuco will officially start in December, which involves the reconstruction of the existing main single track freight line. The specific work includes the construction of two passenger train tracks and one freight track, as well as the construction of seven bridges, six stations, and the cancellation of five level crossings to enhance the safety and efficiency of railway operations.

In addition to the construction of the northern section, the bidding work for the Mapocho Quinta Normal underground section has also been put on the agenda and will be launched in the fourth quarter of this year. The underground section is planned to have two stations, further improving the layout of the railway line. According to the project plan, the entire Santiago Batuco commuter railway line will be fully operational by 2030.

To ensure the transportation capacity demand of railway operations, new commuter fleets are being produced intensively. As early as 2017, EFE awarded a contract worth $171 million to CRRC Sifang and Temoinsa for the supply of 32 three car high-speed trains. Among them, 10 vehicles will be specifically used for the San Diego Batuco route, scheduled to be delivered starting in 2027 to support the phased introduction of services from the Batuco Kilikula section starting in 2028.

This commuter railway line has strong transfer capabilities and will seamlessly connect with three subway lines in San Diego: Quilicura with Line 3, Matucana with the future Line 7, and Quinta Normal with Line 5. This transfer advantage will greatly facilitate passengers' travel and enhance the overall efficiency of urban public transportation. It is expected that the route will transport 35 million passengers annually. After the new service is launched, the travel time between Batuco and Quinta Normal will be reduced from the current 1 hour and 20 minutes to 26 minutes, greatly saving citizens' travel time.

With the orderly progress of various tasks, the Santiago Batuco commuter railway project is gradually moving from planning to reality, and is expected to become a new benchmark for urban transportation development in Chile, bringing more convenient and efficient travel experiences to citizens. Editor/Cheng Liting