Transmetro (Guatemala)

Area served	Guatemala City, Guatemala
Founded	February 3, 2007
Headquarters	21 Calle 6-77 Zona 1, Centro Cívico, Palacio Municipal
Fleet size	203 total 148 articulated 13 bi-articulated 42 rigid
Number of routes	8 (2 BRT Corridors)
Ridership
Website	http://www.muniguate.com/

Transmetro is a BRT system in Guatemala City, Guatemala that is run by the Municipality of Guatemala.

History

Guatemala City has historically counted on private companies to provide the transportation needs of its citizens. In the 1990s, the municipality attempted to restructure the bus system by

buying new buses and withdrawing buses with more than 20 years of service. The city bought 50 articulated Volvo buses and 750 standard units (from the Brazilian firm Caio and Mexican firm

Masa) to lease to the private operators for 8 years. These buses entered service on July 1, 1998. 44 of the articulated units or gusanos (worms) were used on the V21 and V22 routes, with 6 going to

private routes 70, 72, 77, T1200, 1, and 10. After a number of years however, the private companies were not able to pay back the municipality, so the city took 48 articulated buses back

(one was burned and another was damaged beyond repair) and put them into storage. A BRT system was first proposed in 1999, but the municipality began real plans in 2004. The first phase,

called Eje Sur (South Axis), was scheduled to open on December 2004, but it was pushed back to 2005, then 2006, and finally 2007, when it finally opened.

The number of each line is the Zona (Zone) that is either ends in or primarily serves (E.g. Line 12 runs to Zona 12, Line 13 to Zona 13, Line 6 to Zona 6). Almost all lines, except Line 21,

serve the historic city center in Zona 1. Some lines can have different services, including local, express, semi-express, direct, and night services. Lines 12 and 13 are the only true BRT

corridors, with lanes fully separted from traffic, while the other lines run in mixed traffic. The fleet consists of a combination of articulated 18/19-meter (60/62.34-feet), biarticulated

25-meter (82-feet), and rigid 15-meter (49.21 feet) units, while standard 12-meter (40-feet) units are reserved for feeder lines.

Transmetro is not to be confused with the Transurbano public bus system that is run by the Sistema Integrado Guatemalteco de Autobuses (Guatemalan Integrated Bus

System or SIGA) nor with the red buses run by the Asociación de Empresarios de Autobuses Urbanos (Association of Urban Bus Entrepreneurs or UEAU). Likewise, TransMIO is a

different system that serves the neighboring city of Villa Nueva in the south, and so are the Express Roosevelt, Express Naranjo, and Express Minerva lines that are run by the Municipality

of Mixco in the west.

Linea 12 Eje Sur (Line 12 South Axis)

Opened on February 3, 2007. The line starts in Zona 1, serves Zonas 3, 8, and 11, and runs southwest on Avenida (Avenue) Bolivar and Calzada (Boulevard) Raúl Aguilar Batres before ending at

the Estación Centra Sur terminal in the Villa Nueva municipality. The line uses articulated and biarticulated units. The Transmetro alimentadores (feeder lines) that serve Estación Centra

Sure use standard units. A connection can be made to the TransMIO system at Centra Sur.

Linea 13 Eje Central (Line 13 Central Axis)

Opened on April 14, 2010. It is divided into two sections. The main section starts in Zona 1, serves Zonas 4 and 9, and runs to the south, ending at Estación Hangares. Passengers then

transfer to the southern section of Line 13, which runs further south from Estación Hangares to Estación Plaza Berlín. The line uses articulated and rigid units.

Linea 1 Centro Histórico (Line 1 Historic Center)

Opened on December 19, 2012. It serves only Zona 1. It runs north from Estación Centro Cívico to Estación San Sebastián. The line uses rigid units.

Linea 18 Atlántida (Line 8 Atlántida)

Opened on August 25, 2014. The main service starts in Zona 1, serves Zona 6, and ends in the northeast at Estación Atlántida in Zona 18. An express peak-only service runs from Estación

Plaza Barrios in Zona 1 and runs even further northeast. It makes only two stops in Zone 18, both which are unique to this express service. The line uses articulated and rigid units.

Linea 6 Eje Norte (Line 6 North Axis)

Opened on April 25, 2015. The line starts in Zona 1 and runs to the north to Estación Proyectos in Zona 6. The line uses articulated and rigid units.

Linea 2 Hipódromo del Norte (Line 2 North Racecourse)

Opened on January 23, 2016. The line starts in Zona 1 at the San Sebastián transfer station with Line 1 and runs north to Estación Hipódromo. An express service runs from Estación San

Sebastián to Estación Universidad Mariano Gálvez (Mariano Gálvez University or UMG). The line uses rigid units.

Linea 21 (Line 21)

Opened on October 21, 2017. The peak-only line runs from Zona 12 to Zona 21, starting at Estación Trébolito (which is a small walk from

the bigger Estación Trébol on Line 12) and ending at Alcaldía Auxiliar, while serving the important Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala (San Carlos University of Guatemala or USAC) at an

intermediate station. The line uses articulated units.

Linea 7 Periférico (Line 7 Peripheral)

Opened on September 30, 2019. The newest line in the system, it runs on the Anillo Periférico (Peripheral Ring) beltway from the historic center in Zona 1 to USAC in Zona 12, serving Zonas

7 and 11. The line uses articulated and biarticulated units.

Fares

A single fare is Q1.00 ($0.13) is paid in coins, with the exception of Line 21, which is Q2.00 ($0.26). A pre-paid card called SIGA (used on Transurbano) was available for Transmetro until

November 25, 2015 when the system returned to coin-only payment. In February 2020 the mayor of the city announced a new pre-paid contactless smartcard that would accept credit card, debit

cart, and cell phone recharges.

Routes and Stops

List of Transmetro (Guatemala) routes.

List of Transmetro (Guatemala) stops.

Bus Roster

Current articulated fleet

Fleet number(s)	Thumbnail	Year	Manufacturer (Body/Chassis)	Model (Body/Chassis)	Engine	Transmission	Notes
049-065		2007	Busscar/Volvo	Urbanuss Pluss/B12M			Doors on both sides.
066-075		2008	Busscar/Volvo	Urbanuss Pluss/B12M			Doors on both sides.
086-113		2013	Marcopolo/Volvo	Viale BRT/B340M			Doors on both sides.
114-121		2015	Marcopolo/Volvo	Viale BRT/B340M			Doors on both sides.
122-141		2017	Marcopolo/Volvo	Viale BRT/B340M			Doors on both sides.
142-161		2021	Marcopolo/Volvo	Viale BRT/B340M			Doors on both sides.
201-230		2008	Busscar/Scania	Urbanuss Pluss/K270UB			Doors on both sides.
231-238		2013	Busscar/Scania	Urbanuss Pluss/K280UB			Doors on both sides.
239-242		2013	Marcopolo/Scania	Gran Viale/K310UB			Doors on both sides.
301-310		2014	Marcopolo/Scania	Viale BRT/K310IA			Doors on both sides.
401-435		2019	Marcopolo/Scania	Viale BRT/K310IA			Doors on both sides.
BI001-BI003		2016	Marcopolo/Volvo	Viale BRT Biarticulated/B340M			Doors on both sides.
BI004-BI013		2017	Marcopolo/Volvo	Viale BRT Biarticulated/B340M			Doors on both sides.

Current feeder fleet

Fleet number(s)	Thumbnail	Year	Manufacturer (Body/Chassis)	Model (Body/Chassis)	Engine	Transmission	Notes
240, 255, 260, 263, 284, 299, 302, 344, 394, 417, 425, 441, 462, 470, 472, 475, 477-478, 533, 561 C01-C04, C07, C09, DDS-03-DDS005, TC001, various unknown units		1997	Caio//Mercedes-Benz	Vitória/OF-1318			Used on Centra Sur terminal feeder routes. At least 40 units known to exist. C01 renumbered to 394. C02-C04, C07, C09 used as Bicimetro units (for bicycles). One unit converted to double-decker TuriBus. One unit converted to Dispensario Municipal Movil (mobile water dispensary). One unit converted to police unit.

On Order

Fleet number(s)	Thumbnail	Year	Manufacturer (Body/Chassis)	Model (Body/Chassis)	Engine	Transmission	Notes

Retired fleet

Fleet number(s)	Thumbnail	Year	Manufacturer (Body/Chassis)	Model (Body/Chassis)	Engine	Transmission	Notes
001-048		1998	Ciferal/Volvo	GLS/B58			Originally bought for private non-BRT service, then stored for about 3 years. Originally came with doors on right side; modified for platform level boarding and doors on both sides before Transmetro opened. Some have been converted to standard non-articulated units after retirement.
76-78, 80-81		2010	Marcopolo/Mercedes-Benz	Gran Viale			Doors on both sides. Transferred to Transurbano.
79, 82-85		2010	Busscar/Mercedes-Benz	Urbanuss Pluss			Doors on both sides. Transferred to Transurbano.
		2012	Volvo	Hybrid 7700			Trial bus.