Terminal Aérea metro station opened on 19 December 1981, providing northwestward service toward Consulado metro station and eastward service toward Pantitlán metro station. The station's pictogram features an airliner and a control tower, reflecting its proximity to the airport's Terminal 1. Inside, there are six murals painted by David Lach. In 2019, the station had an average daily ridership of 18,389 passengers, ranking it the 96th busiest station in the network and the fourth busiest of the line.
Location and layout
The Terminal Aérea bus stop seen from Boulevard Puerto Aéreo
Terminal Aérea metro station has two exits leading to Boulevard Puerto Aéreo, but none directly to the airport. The east exit is at the corner with Calle Aeropuerto Civil, in Colonia Peñón de los Baños, while the west entrance is found between Calle Norte 33 and Calle Oriente 33 in Colonia Moctezuma 2ª sección.[7] On their Policy Review of Mexico, the OECD criticized the station for not having proper signage and for not being designed for first-time travelers as they "must negotiate over 110 steps" to reach it.[8]
Line 5 of the Mexico City Metro was built by Cometro, a subsidiary of Empresas ICA.[4] Its first section, where Terminal Aérea station is located, was opened on 19 December 1981, running from Pantitlán to Consulado stations.[12]
Terminal Aérea metro station was built with Santo Tomás marble floors, travertine marble walls, and rustic-texturedstuccoplafond.[4] The track between Oceanía and Terminal Aérea stations spans 1,174 meters (3,852 ft),[13] and descends from the grade level to the underground level, with a 4.9% slope at the time of its opening.[14] For the opposite section toward Hangares, which is 1,153 meters (3,783 ft) long,[13][15] the tunnel was built with slurry walls using the Milan method.[4]
Near the station, in Colonia Peñon de los Baños, workers found the remains of mammoths, bison, horses, camels, birds, and fishes, as well as a Teotihuacan settlement.[16]
Name and pictogram
Before the station was built, Mexico City International Airport was serviced by the Aeropuerto station on Line 1 (the Pink line), located 15 blocks away to the south.[17] After the Terminal Aérea metro station was constructed, many people continued to disembark at Aeropuerto station due to its confusing name and the station's airliner silhouette pictogram.[18][19] It was not until 1997 that the station was renamed "Boulevard Puerto Aéreo", and the logo was updated to feature a logo of a bridge with a dome below, reflecting local landmarks.[20] The pictogram for Terminal Aérea metro station depicts an airliner in front of a control tower instead.[7]
Incidents
On 4 May 2015, a train crashed at Oceanía metro station when a train coming from Terminal Aérea crashed with another one parked at the end of the platforms. The crash was caused by a brake failure, coupled with heavy rain and hail.[21] Terminal Aérea station was temporarily closed for repairs after the crash.[22]
Since 1981, subsidence caused by rain had increased the slope between both stations to at least 7%. To address the sinkings, a 1 km (0.62 mi) tunnel extension was planned but canceled due to budget constrains.[23][21] Instead, an 800 m (0.50 mi) anti-rain roof that cost Mx$65 million was built to prevent the tracks from getting wet and reduce the risk of trains sliding.[24]
From 1 to 16 March 2020, Terminal Aérea, Hangares, and Pantitlán stations were closed due to a gasoline leak at a surface petrol station.[25]
Ridership
According to the data provided by the authorities, before the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on public transport, commuters averaged per year between 15,700 and 18,400 daily entrances between 2014 and 2019; the station had a ridership of 6,712,062 passengers (18,389 passengers per day) passengers in 2019,[26] marking an increase of 74,719 passengers compared to 2018.[27] In 2019 specifically, Terminal Aérea metro station ranked as the 96th busiest of the system's 195 stations and the line's fourth busiest.[26]
Terminal Aérea station has six murals painted by Mexican artist David Lach in 1981, becoming the first person to do it inside the Mexico City Metro.[35] Four murals, titled Paisajes cálidos y fríos,[36] are located on the platform's headwalls, with Cálidos on the southern walls and Fríos on the northern walls.[4] According to Lach, the red and green colors represent direction and temperature.[37] The other two murals, Tlaltilco (in the east lobby) and Cuitzeo (in the west lobby), blend elements of pre-Columbian culture with contemporary Mexican imagery.[4][36][35]
Near the station, a pedestrian bridge known as "MacPuente" is used as an informal observation deck where people gather to watch airplanes land and take off.[38][39]
Gallery
Murals by David Lach
Cuitzeo, in honor of pre-Hispanic cultures
Tlatilco, in honor of pre-Hispanic cultures
One of the Paisajes Cálidos
One of the Paisajes Fríos
There are multiple murals inside Terminal Aérea station.
Notes
^Estación del Metro Terminal Aérea. Spanish pronunciation: [teɾmiˈnalaˈe.ɾea]ⓘ. The name of the station literally means "Air Terminal" in Spanish and it is known in English as Air Terminal station.[2]
^ abcdef"Línea 5, Ciudad de México" [Line 5, Mexico City] (in Spanish). iNGENET Infraestructura. 20 July 2009. Archived from the original on 2 September 2014. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
^"Red de Rutas" [Routes network] (in Spanish). Red de Transporte de Pasajeros. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
^"Red de corredores" [Route network]. Organismo Regulador de Transporte (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 14 October 2021. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
^"Aerotren". Mexico City International Airport. Archived from the original on 25 February 2021. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
^"Plan Maestro del Metro 2018 – 2030" [Master Plan 2018 – 2030] (PDF) (in Spanish). Sistema de Transporte Colectivo Metro. 2018. p. 59. Archived(PDF) from the original on 17 December 2019.
^Asociación del Congreso Panamericano de Ferrocarriles (1975). Boletín de la Comisión Permanente [Newsletter of the Permanent Commission] (in Spanish). Vol. 58. p. 154.
^ abc"Afluencia de estación por línea 2019" [Station traffic by line in 2019] (in Spanish). Sistema Transporte Colectivo Metro. 2020. Archived from the original on 3 July 2020. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
^ ab"Afluencia de estación por línea 2018" [Station traffic by line in 2018] (in Spanish). Sistema Transporte Colectivo Metro. 2019. Archived from the original on 6 June 2019. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
^"Afluencia de estación por línea 2021" [Station traffic by line in 2021] (in Spanish). Sistema Transporte Colectivo Metro. 2022. Archived from the original on 7 March 2022. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
^"Afluencia de estación por línea 2020" [Station traffic by line in 2020] (in Spanish). Sistema Transporte Colectivo Metro. 2021. Archived from the original on 21 June 2021. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
^"Afluencia de estación por línea 2017" [Station traffic by line in 2017] (in Spanish). Sistema Transporte Colectivo Metro. 2019. Archived from the original on 3 May 2020. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
^"Afluencia de estación por línea 2016" [Station traffic by line in 2016] (in Spanish). Sistema Transporte Colectivo Metro. 2017. Archived from the original on 3 May 2020. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
^"Afluencia de estación por línea 2015" [Station traffic by line in 2015] (in Spanish). Sistema Transporte Colectivo Metro. 2016. Archived from the original on 3 May 2020. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
^"Afluencia de estación por línea 2014" [Station traffic by line in 2014] (in Spanish). Sistema Transporte Colectivo Metro. 2015. Archived from the original on 3 May 2020. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
^"Afluencia de estación por línea 2009" [Station traffic by line in 2009] (in Spanish). Sistema Transporte Colectivo Metro. 2010. Archived from the original on 7 September 2010. Retrieved 20 December 2024.
^"Paisajes cálidos y fríos" [Warm and Cold Landscapes] (in Spanish). Sistema Transporte Colectivo Metro. Archived from the original on 24 December 2017. Retrieved 15 April 2020.
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