Charleroi Metro
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| Overview | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner | Société Régionale Wallonne du Transport | ||
| Locale | Charleroi, Hainaut, Belgium | ||
| Transit type | Premetro/Light rail | ||
| Number of lines | 4 | ||
| Number of stations | 48 (incl. 10 underground) | ||
| Website | TEC Homepage | ||
| Operation | |||
| Began operation | 21 June 1976 (as light rail) | ||
| Operator(s) | TEC Charleroi | ||
| Technical | |||
| System length | 33 km (21 mi) | ||
| Track gauge | 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in) metre gauge | ||
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Charleroi Metro (French: Métro de Charleroi; previously known as the Charleroi Premetro (French: Métro léger de Charleroi)) is a 33-kilometre (21 mi) light rail network in Belgium, consisting of a loop line around central Charleroi and two branches towards the suburbs of Gilly and Anderlues. A third branch to Châtelet was partially built but never entered service.
The current system was opened in seven phases ranging from 1976 to 2012, which included 28 stations, of which 24 were in service as of 2012[update] along with 6 regular tram stops in Anderlues. On 22 June 2013, 18 more stations were to the metro system added when line M3 to Gosselies went into service.
The original plans for the network were much more extensive with 8 branches radiating from the central loop, but had to be abandoned due to high costs and low prospective passenger numbers.
As of June 2013[update], the network consists in a central loop running around the centre of Charleroi and comprising 8 stations, from which three branches radiate towards suburban areas:
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Wikipedia