Line E (Buenos Aires Underground)

History

Line E was opened on 20 June 1944, after construction began in 1938, with an original route that ran from Constitución railway station to General Urquiza. Soon after, it was decided to abandon the terminus at Constitución (which also served as the connection with Line C) and instead reroute the line towards the Plaza de Mayo.

Work began in 1957, and in 1966 the San José, Independencia, Belgrano and Plaza de Mayo (now Bolívar) stations were opened to the public by president Arturo Umberto Illia. For many years, the two stations that had been closed as a result of the Line E re-route remained unused until the mid-1990s when one was converted into a workshop to service the rolling stock of the line.

The line was further extended in 1973 to José María Moreno and then again in 1985 to Plaza de los Virreyes. The PreMetro E2 tramway was completed in 1987 and was linked to Line E with the intention of connecting a larger Premetro network to the line, although this never materialised following privatisation.

Under the private operation of the Subte by Metrovías, the colour of the line was changed from yellow to purple during the 1990s. Purple had previously been used for Line C, while yellow is now used for Line H.

Extension to Retiro

As part of a general effort to extend the Buenos Aires Underground, it was decided to extend Line E from Bolívar to Retiro railway station (with intermediate stations at Catalinas and Correo Central) where it would re-connect with Line C and the Mitre Line, and eventually Line H when its extension was completed. By 2014, all the major structural works had been completed on the three new stations with the tracks and signalling systems still to be completed.

In July 2015, the City of Buenos Aires confirmed that, despite the advanced state of the works, the extension would not be opened until 2019 citing delays that came about as a result of the transfer of the works from the National Government to the City Government in 2012. The city completed the additional work required by the new deadline. On Monday 3 June 2019 the extension to Retiro was completed. The extension was expected to increase ridership on the line by 25%.

Rolling stock

Main article: Buenos Aires Underground rolling stock

The line originally used Siemens-Schuckert Orenstein & Koppel rolling stock during its inauguration and for many years after. However, this was later replaced by similar CAF-GEE rolling stock purchased in 1968 which served on the line until 2020, when they were retired In 2006, 64 of the CAF-GEE cars were to be refurbished, but this was ultimately abandoned.

In 2019, refurbished Alstom Metropolis 100 cars began to operate on Line E, after being displaced from Line D. These units have worked alongside the Fiat-Materfer fleet since then. The Alstom 100 fleet continued to transfer to Line E until 2024, comprising the vast majority of the line's rolling stock. Less than five Fiat-Materfer formations operate in regular service as of July 2024.

Ghost stations

There are two ghost stations on the line – San José vieja and Constitución. These formed part of the line's original Line E route towards Constitución railway station until the line was re-routed in 1966. Both stations have been used as workshops and storage areas for the line's rolling stock. It has also been evaluated using the two stations and their corresponding tunnels as the southern part of Line F since that line's projected route in that area overlaps with the former Line E route.

San José vieja was used as a set for the 1996 Argentine film Moebius and served as the fictional Dock Sud and Parque stations.

Gallery

File:Inauguración provisoria Boedo.jpg|Temporary Boedo station being opened (1944) File:Buenos Aires - Subte - Combinación en Constitución.jpg|Passengers changing to Line C at the former Constitución station (c.1950s) File:Saguier-3.jpg|Entrance to Plaza de los Virreyes station at the Premetro's Intendente Saguier terminal. File:Medalla milagrosa.jpg|Medalla Milagrosa station File:Buenos Aires - San Nicolás - Palacio de Correos 2.JPG|Correo Central station being built in front of the Central Post Office File:Subte LineaE BuenosAires Bolivar.jpg|Subway car at Bolivar station

References

References

1. (13 August 2018). "Subte: con récord de pasajeros, siguen las quejas por el servicio y busca mejorar con más obras".
2. (20 February 2019). "En 2018 el Subte transportó la mayor cantidad de pasajeros en 25 años".
3. [http://enelsubte.com/noticias/linea-e-70-anos-buscando-pasajeros-3243/ Línea E: 70 años buscando pasajeros] – EnElSubte, June 2014
4. [http://www.buenosaires.gob.ar/subte/nuestra-historia/linea-e Línea E] – Buenos Aires Ciudad.
5. [http://enelsubte.com/noticias/premetro-puente-la-noria-el-olvido-el-metrobus-del-sur-2781/ Premetro a Puente de la Noria, en el olvido por el Metrobus del Sur] – EnElSubte, August 2013
6. (1 January 2014). "Metrovías cumple 20 años operando el Subte". enelSubte.com.
7. [http://enelsubte.com/noticias/reporte-obra-extension-linea-e-3107/ Reporte de obra: extensión línea E] – EnElSubte, May 2014
8. [http://enelsubte.com/noticias/ciudad-confirma-que-la-extension-de-la-linea-e-abrira-recien-en-2017/ Ciudad confirma que la extensión de la línea E abrirá recién en 2017] – EnElSubte, 23 July 2015.
9. [https://www.clarin.com/ciudades/subte-20-anos-extienden-linea-postergada_0_i2LNS3Twc.html Subte E: tras 20 años, extienden la línea más postergada]
10. [http://enelsubte.com/noticias/linea-e-70-anos-buscando-pasajeros-3243/ Línea E: 70 años buscando pasajeros] – EnElSubte, 20 June 2014.
11. [http://enelsubte.com/noticias/ferrofilatelismo-1086/ Ferrofilatelia] – EnElSubte, 6 June 2010.
12. (17 July 2014). "Mientras reforman coches de 80 años, desguazan otros más modernos". enelSubte.com.
13. [http://enelsubte.com/noticias/realizaran-estudios-constitucion-ubicar-la-cabecera-la-linea-f-1478/ Realizarán estudios en Constitución para ubicar la cabecera de la línea F] – 1 August 2011
14. [http://enelsubte.com/noticias/murales-alusivos-a-moebius-en-san-jose/ Murales alusivos a Moebius en San José] – EnElSubte, 18 December 2014.