Metro de Madrid is shortly to tender a contract worth more than €2.8 million to renew the air-conditioning systems of the 2000-A model trains, popularly known as “Pandas”, which operate on Line 1.
According to the Comunidad de Madrid’s statement, the works involve replacing all condenser units, which discharge the heat extracted from the train to the outside, and evaporator units, which absorb heat from inside the vehicle to cool the environment.
The new equipment has already been designed and will be manufactured specifically for these trains, taking into account their technical characteristics and age. The operator expects the systems to be fully installed before summer 2027.
According to the regional government, the intervention forms part of the routine maintenance of the fleet while Metro awaits the arrival of the 40 narrow-loading gauge trains acquired to renew Line 1, on which no further news is available.
Metro is also allocating close to €3.5 million to a four-year contract for the maintenance of the cooling systems on Lines 1 and 5, which includes preventive work and repairs to components worn by use.
A summer of high temperatures on the Madrid Underground
The intervention is announced at the end of a summer in which these systems suffered repeated failures that hampered passengers’ mobility.
Complaints were constant, in the face of the inaction (as we reported in July) of an operator that merely responded that it was “passing on the report”, while failing to withdraw trains with an unbearable temperature.
As a result, two initiatives emerged to highlight the situation: the X account “Sufridores de la línea 1” and the Termo de Madrid initiative, which collects reports of air-conditioning failures.