Metro L3 will reach Esplugues: works from 2028 and nine new stations

The extension of Barcelona Metro line 3 already has a start date: works will begin in mid-2028 and continue until 2033. The project provides for almost nine kilometres of new track and nine stations, taking the L3 beyond Zona Universitaria to Sant Feliu de Llobregat.

In November, the Govern awarded the drafting of the project for 4.5 million euros, with the aim of having it ready by the end of this year. The update to the section between Zona Universitaria and Esplugues Centre will therefore make it possible to adapt the route to the future Clínic-University of Barcelona Health Campus, which will open in 2035.

The first phase of the extension will add 2.5 kilometres and two stations in Esplugues. Esplugues Centre will be opposite the town hall, next to the Pont d'Esplugues tram stop. The second, Sant Joan de Déu-Finestrelles, will be located between the hospital of the same name and the future Clínic campus.

The route will start at Zona Universitaria, crossing González Tablas street and entering Esplugues as far as the junction of Laureà Miró and Josep Puig i Cadafalch, just before the B-23. In this stretch, the two new stops and a train turnback siding will be built, optimising the line's operation.

The overall budget for the extension is around 500 million euros and it forms part of the Barcelona Metropolitan Region Infrastructure Master Plan 2021–2030. The new Clínic campus, with an investment of 1.7 billion, has prompted the project update to guarantee rail access to this health-care and university hub.

The Generalitat already had a previous project for the first phase, valued at 430 million. However, the need to improve accessibility to the future campus led to the plan being revised, with the L3 extension expected to enter service at the same time as the new hospital facilities.