“I would say that within five, six, seven years we could be thinking about works on the ground and acquired rolling stock”, stated Miguel Pinto Luz.

The government official was speaking to the media at the end of the ceremony to sign the protocol for the elaboration of the Metro expansion project to Costa da Caparica and Trafaria, passing through Santo António and São João, signed between the Municipal Council of Almada, in the district of Setúbal, the Lisbon Metropolitan and Transportes Metropolitanos de Lisboa (TML).

This new section, which will add approximately 6.6 kilometres to the current network and will allow a direct connection to river transport, aims to reduce dependence on individual transport, thus responding to Portugal's commitment to achieving carbon neutrality in 2050.

“Today we did not launch Metro Sul do Tejo, we launched studies and we intend, in the next three years, to present these studies”, with the value of the investment included, said Miguel Pinto Luz.

According to the Minister of Infrastructure and Housing, the Government has an integrative vision of a two-bank city that cannot be developed only on the north bank.

“Now let us carry out these studies rigorously so that there is no doubt whatsoever so that all political actors in the future do not come to undo what a large broad consensus is defining today”, he explained.