Originally Posted by
Toshbaf
No debate or arguments at all. I haven't seen Santiago after the riots. Too bad so many stations were damaged.
Originally Posted by
Antonio8069
While I am generally loathe to debate others FT, this comment requires a reply. 80 of the 136 metro stations in Santiago were damaged in the riots last month. The videos show the destruction as horrible and senseless. I have no idea how many are operational but its not business as usual for the metro in the Chilean capital.
As a gringo living in
Santiago who takes the subway every day, much of the system is back up and functioning normally, with regular hours (11 PM close) set to be reinstated tomorrow. Several stations were damaged to such an extent (by an organized anarchist (oxymoron?) attack—not common people demonstrating) that they will need to be rebuilt almost completely; these will be closed for most if not all of 2020 (fewer than 30 remain closed today). The worst damage was at the southern end of Line 4 and the western end of Line 5. Yet much of the system was completely unscathed or sustained only mild vandalism (graffiti, broken glass), including most of Lines 1, 2, 3, the northern half of Line 4, and much of Line 6. As for damage in general after the riots, it was confined to certain sections of town (not everywhere as the international media may portray). Santiago and the Metro are largely up and running!
Worth noting that most lines in Santiago do run on rubber wheels, but the newer lines (Line 3 for example) are on super-smooth metal rails.
Damage aside from the riots, Santiago's subway is clean, extensive, ever-expanding, and efficient.
And...no one mentioned
Atlanta for easy ATL-to-downtown/midtown/Buckhead access on the MARTA train? The MARTA isn't very extensive, but if you need to go where the train goes, it works out well.