Lisbon Metro Hits Record Ridership as Free Youth Travel and New Lines Transform Commutes

Anyone passing through Lisbon’s underground network over the past year will have noticed that the trains feel busier. That impression is not just anecdotal: official figures show the Metro carried 176.7 million passengers in 2024, a leap of 6.5 percent on the previous year despite periodic shutdowns and strikes.

Ridership rebounds—and then some

The recovery that began after the pandemic finally gathered full steam last year. Average weekday boardings nudged past the pre-Covid benchmark, placing the system among Europe’s fastest-growing metros in percentage terms. Paid travel remained the backbone of demand—171.9 million validations, up 8.3 percent—yet the steepest relative jump came from young travellers riding for free.

Free passes for under-23s redraw the map

Portugal already waived fares for students under 23, but on 1 December 2024 the benefit was extended to every young resident in that age bracket. Roughly 26 000 new sign-ups in the first week alone underline how quickly the policy changed commuting habits. Metro operators lose the ticket revenue but are slated to receive €12.5 million in state compensation this year, cushioning the financial impact while supporting the government’s climate targets.

Fraud edges higher

Not all trips were legal. The network logged 4.8 million unpaid entries in 2024, an 18 percent increase that the company attributes to crowding at busy gates and, in some stations, aging barriers. Security staff have been redeployed to pinch points, yet management concedes the problem remains stubborn.

Construction, strikes and an aging signal system

Service was anything but seamless. From 3–19 August the Green and Yellow lines shut large stretches so crews could connect tracks for the long-awaited Circular Line. Three short-lived strikes in November and December then compounded the disruption, depressing passenger numbers on the affected days. Even when trains ran, the 40-year-old signalling hardware showed its age: monthly downtime averaged 3.44 hours, occasionally breaching the four-hour ceiling set in the operator’s quality charter.

July 2025 status report: where the works stand

Fast-forward to mid-2025 and the landscape is changing again. The Circular Line—linking Rato to Cais do Sodré via two brand-new stops at Estrela and Santos—finally opened in February after a four-month delay. Early data suggest the loop could add roughly 3 million rides a year once travel patterns settle. Meanwhile the Communication-Based Train Control (CBTC) upgrade has gone live on the Blue Line, promising tighter headways but also producing teething troubles that halted service for more than four hours on 6 March. Installation on the future Yellow-Green alignment is scheduled through 2027, with sporadic late-night closures expected.

Reliability still lagging targets

Metro staff dispatched 110 signal-failure teams last year, slightly fewer than in 2023 yet still enough to keep the reliability index at 96 hours between faults—below corporate goals. Paradoxically, customer surveys give the service a 7.35 out of 10, hinting that riders are willing to overlook hiccups if frequencies remain high. To bolster resilience the 2025 budget earmarks funds for new traction converters in the 1990s-era trains and a refreshed power-supply system.

What newcomers to Lisbon should expect next

For residents and would-be expats the message is mixed: crowding is rising, but so is capacity. The Circular Line has shortened cross-city journeys, and the Red Line extension toward Alcântara—already under way—will further improve riverfront access. Occasional weekend or late-evening interruptions remain likely while engineers swap out signal cables, yet the overall trajectory points to more frequent trains and broader coverage. In short, the capital’s metro is creaking and growing at the same time; knowing that, planning a few extra minutes into the commute is still advisable, but the long-term outlook is brighter than at any point since the tunnels first opened in 1959.