Early-Morning Lisbon Metro Shutdowns Set for 9 and 11 September

For anyone who relies on Lisbon’s underground to commute, sight-see or sprint to the airport, brace for an unusually bumpy week. A fresh, partial stoppage will shutter the metro in the early hours of 09 and 11 September, and, because courts declined to impose minimum service, every station is expected to stay dark until mid-morning. That means thousands of newcomers, tourists and long-term expats will wake up to closed gates at the precise moment they need to reach work, school or their Ryanair gate.

What expats need to know this week

The most immediate takeaway is timing. Trains will not leave their depots before roughly 10:30 on both Tuesday and Thursday. All four colour-coded lines—Azul, Amarela, Verde and Vermelha—are affected equally. If your daily rhythm depends on the usual 06:30 start-up, factor in an extra two to three hours or consider remote work. Local platforms such as myLisboa and Citymapper are already flagging the shutdown, but real-time alerts in English remain patchy.

How the walk-out will unfold

Behind the scenes, the strike is staggered. Operations staff withdraw between 05:00 and 10:00, while maintenance crews step out from 07:00 to noon. Administrative and fixed-site employees pause work from 07:30 to 12:30, and track teams on night shifts down tools from 02:00 to 07:00. The layered timetable means the company cannot warm-up trains or carry out safety checks until mid-morning, pushing the first departures well past rush-hour. Management tried to secure a skeleton timetable, but the arbitral tribunal ruled that public inconvenience alone does not justify overriding the right to strike.

Why unions say they had no choice

Worker representatives insist the dispute is about more than wages. They cite a stalled career-progression framework, the refusal to honour a 37.5-hour week, and inequities in holiday entitlements on the Red Line—which serves the airport and tech corridor. Additional friction surrounds the size of the meal, Christmas and vacation allowances. Two compromise offers were tabled by the company in late August, but a mass meeting on 08 September rejected both as insufficient. Union officials privately concede that morale has taken a hit as the metro posts operating losses—€19.8 M in 2024—even while passenger numbers rose 6.5 % last year.

Getting around when the tunnels are closed

Lisbon is not exactly stranded, but alternatives become strained fast. Carris buses and historic elétricos honour the same Navegante pass, yet they can feel sardine-packed by 08:00. Comboios de Portugal suburban trains are reliable if you live near a rail corridor, though only the Cais do Sodré line shadows the Green Line closely. Across the Tagus, ferries from Cacilhas, Seixal and Barreiro run as normal. Rideshare platforms—Uber, Bolt and FreeNow—typically surge-price during metro strikes, while bicycle lanes along Avenida da Liberdade and the riverside offer a scenic plan B for the fit and fearless. If you must drive, remember that downtown parking is scarce and that the low-emission zone in Baixa-Chiado is camera-enforced.

Strike fatigue: the bigger picture since 2024

Commuters may experience déjà vu. Three short stoppages hit the network last winter, and a ban on overtime in May disrupted festivities for Santo António. Although the annual report stops short of itemising lost revenue per strike, management acknowledges a dent in “values of demand”. Ridership reached 177 M in 2024, but each morning closure translates into tens of thousands of missed trips and, for small businesses along the lines, slower foot traffic.

Can a deal still emerge?

Negotiations resume on Friday with mediators from the Labour Ministry. The company argues that further concessions could widen its €18.9 M operating deficit, while unions counter that understaffing already jeopardises safety and punctuality. Government officials, keen to keep a lid on inflationary wage spirals across the public sector, privately push both sides toward a scaled pay-rise and phased hour reduction. For expats, the real-world advice is simple: keep a close eye on negotiation bulletins. A last-minute breakthrough would reopen the tunnels at dawn; a collapse could lead to longer or even full-day strikes later this autumn.

Even if a truce is reached, the events of this week underline a truth foreign residents quickly learn: Lisbon’s public transport system is reliable—except when it isn’t. Having a backup route, whether it’s river, rail or two wheels, is no longer optional; it’s part of everyday life in the Portuguese capital.