La Raza metro station
Mexico City Metro station
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
La Raza metro station[c] is a transfer station in the city's borough of Gustavo A. Madero. La Raza is a combined underground and at-grade station divided into two lines. It serves Lines 3 (Olive Line) and 5 (Yellow Line), each with two side platforms. La Raza metro station is located between Potrero and Tlatelolco stations on Line 3, and between Autobuses del Norte and Misterios stations on Line 5. It serves the Colonias (neighborhoods) of Vallejo and Héroes de Nacozari. The station is situated along Avenida de los Insurgentes and near Eje Central.
Insurgentes Norte Avenue
Leoncavallo Street and Paganini StreetGustavo A. Madero, Mexico City
Mexico
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La Raza metro station opened on 25 August 1978 as the temporary northern terminal of Line 3, with southbound service to Hospital General. Service on Line 5 began on 1 July 1982. The station's pictogram represents the nearby Monumento a la Raza, a pyramid-shaped structure dedicated to la Raza, Mexico's diverse native peoples and cultures.
The station is partially accessible to people with disabilities, including braille signage plates and elevators. The transfer tunnel is approximately 600 meters (2,000 ft) long, making it the second-longest in the system. Inside, The Tunnel of Science permanent science exhibition features science and astronomy pictures and information. Also, there is an Internet café, a showcase exhibition, a library, and a mural titled Monstruos de fin de milenio, painted by Ariosto Otero Reyes. Outside, there is a bicycle parking station and a transportation hub serving local and intercity routes.
In 2025, La Raza metro station served 13,029,191 passengers. Since its opening, the station has been the site of several incidents, including a shooting and a train crash in the northbound tunnel, both on Line 3.
Location and layout
La Raza is a transfer metro station, located in the colonias (neighborhoods) of Héroes de Nacozari and Vallejo, in Gustavo A. Madero borough, northern Mexico City. It is situated below Avenida de los Insurgentes (Line 3), and along Eje Central (Line 5). The station facilities offer accessibility for people with disabilities, featuring braille plates and elevators.[3][4]
Within the system, it is followed by Potrero and Tlatelolco stations on Line 3 and Autobuses del Norte and Misterios stations on Line 5. The station has five exits. On Line 3, the northwest and southwest exits provide access to Avenida de los Insurgentes in Colonia Vallejo, while the western exit leads to the avenue in Colonia Héroes de Nacozari. On Line 5, the northern exit provides access to Calle Leoncavallo and Calle Paganini in Colonia Vallejo, while the southern exit leads to Calle Paganini.[3]
The area is serviced by a Centro de transferencia modal (CETRAM), a type of transportation hub covering 19,544 square meters (210,370 sq ft).[5] From there, commuters can access various routes and modes of transportation.[6] The CETRAM provides access to various routes and modes of transportation, including 1 and 3 of the Mexico City Metrobús system,[7] Line 4 of the Mexibús system,[8] Line 1 (formerly Line A) of the trolleybus network,[3] Routes 11-A, 12, 23, 27-A, and 103 of the Red de Transporte de Pasajeros network,[9] and Routes 7-D, 20-C, and 20-D of the city's public bus network.[10] Street stalls are also present within the CETRAM.[6]
In August 2016, the Government of Mexico City installed a bicycle parking station outside Line 3.[11]
History and construction
The passenger transfer tunnel that connects Line 3 with Line 5 has an approximate length of 600 m (2,000 ft),[12] and is the second-longest in the system after Atlalilco metro station, which connects Lines 8 and 12 (the Green and Golden lines, respectively), whose length is 880 m (2,890 ft).[13] Inside the station, there is an Internet café, a help desk, and a library.[3][14]
Name and pictogram
Its pictogram depicts the Monumento a la Raza, a pyramid-shaped construction erected in 1940 in honor of la Raza,[3][15] an ethnic movement by Mexico's indigenous peoples.[2]
Line 3
The line was built by Ingeniería de Sistemas de Transportes Metropolitano, Electrometro, and Cometro, the latter being a subsidiary of Empresas ICA.[16] It opened on 20 November 1970.[17] La Raza metro station became its temporary northern terminal on 25 August 1978 providing service southward toward Hospital General metro station.[18] Northern service toward Indios Verdes metro station began on 1 December 1979.[19]
The station was built underground, and the stretch between La Raza and Potrero transitions from the underground level to the grade level.[20] Its length is 1,106 meters (3,629 ft).[21] The opposite tunnel toward Tlatelolco is 1,445 m (4,741 ft) long.[21]
Line 5
Cometro built the line, which was inaugurated on 19 December 1981.[22][23] The station opened on 1 July 1982, the first day of service for the western expansion from Consulado metro station to La Raza.[18] The station was built at grade level and served as a temporary terminus station.[24] The line was later extended northwest toward Politécnico metro station on 30 August 1982.[25] The section between La Raza and Autobuses del Norte is 975 m (3,199 ft) long,[26] while the opposite one toward Misterios is 892 m (2,927 ft) long,[26] and goes from the street level to the underground one.[21]
In 2008, Metro authorities carried out maintenance work on the station's roof.[27]
Incidents
The station floods during periods of heavy rainfall.[28][29]
On 28 September 1995, Ernesto Cruz Jiménez, a police officer from Huixquilucan, State of Mexico, entered a parked train and shot seven passengers, killing two.[30][31] After being arrested, Cruz stated that he was feeling depressed. He was sentenced to 50 years in prison.[32][33] Following the incident, the Government of Mexico City installed walk-through metal detectors in the metro system.[31][34]
On 7 January 2023, at 09:16 CST (UTC−6),[35] two trains crashed between La Raza and Potrero interstation tunnel, resulting in one death and 106 injuries.[36] Both trains were heading northbound toward Indios Verdes metro station. Service between Indios Verdes and Guerrero metro stations was temporarily suspended.[37] Twenty days later, the Attorney General's Office of Mexico City attributed the accident to two reasons: reported cable theft the day before and negligent driving by the operator for failing to deactivate the autopilot and not driving in manual mode in the theft zone, as indicated by the procedure manual. Subsequently, the Mexico City government deployed members of the National Guard to monitor metro stations, claiming—without providing evidence—that opponents sabotaged the system.[38][39] After the accident, a metro driver published a video about how the tunnels look due to the lack of lighting in multiple areas.[40]
Landmarks
El túnel de la ciencia
The El túnel de la ciencia Museum (lit. transl. The Tunnel of Science)[41] is the longest permanent exposition in the world.[42] Science and astronomy pictures and information are displayed on the walls located inside the transfer tunnel. It was inaugurated on 30 November 1988, becoming the first Latin American scientific exhibition installed in a public transport location.[14] Its purpose is to provide scientific information to passengers, particularly aimed at young people, many of whom are studentsat the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) and the National Polytechnic Institute (IPN).[43]
The tunnel covers an area of 6,177 square meters (66,490 sq ft)[44] and features images of autumn sky constellations,[43] planets and satellites, the Milky Way,[45] and, in the middle of the tunnel, there is a drawn-to-scale representation of the celestial sphere displaying the 12 zodiac constellations, drawn with luminous paint.[14][46] The exhibition was installed by Universum, UNAM's science museum.[43] It is estimated that 60,000 people visit it with the guided tour service.[14] In 2018, the Institute of Astronomy of the UNAM remodeled the tunnel.[14]
Other exhibitions
On 25 November 2008, the Metro authorities installed the 1997 mural Monstruos de fin de milenio (lit. transl. Monsters from the End of the Millennium), which was painted and donated to the metro system by Mexican painter Ariosto Otero Reyes.[47]
In June 2015, the Center for Research and Advanced Studies (CINVESTAV) of the IPN exhibited multiple human brains, showcasing their anatomy, and some injuries they had suffered.[48] In April 2016, the Geology Museum of the UNAM displayed rocks, fossils, minerals, and a shark jaw.[49] In June 2016, the system featured an exhibition of 80 preserved human body parts by the Tominaga Nakamoto University, a display of 50 sculptures by Nour Kuri representing human bodies, and six photographs by Duilio Rodríguez representing pain.[50][51]
In May and June 2018, La Raza metro station hosted exhibitions by Manuel de la Cera, Norma Patiño, Teresa Olalde, and the Metropolitan Autonomous University (UAM)'s LibroFest.[52] From 21 August to 15 October 2018, the Secretariat of Agriculture and Rural Development (SAGARPA) and the National Commission for the Knowledge and Use of Biodiversity (CONABIO) presented an exhibition in the tunnel focused on bees and their ecological importance.[53] In 2020, the station temporarily displayed pictures, landscapes, and sculptures created by the Swiss artist H. R. Giger.[54]
Gallery
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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 30,700 and 32,900 on Line 3 daily entrances between 2014 and 2019 and 9,500 and 10,500 daily entrances on Line 5 during the same period.
In 2019, the station's total ridership reached 14,942,281 passengers. Of this, Line 3, saw 11,364,171 passenger entries (31,134 passengers per day), marking a decrease of 397,769 passengers compared to 2018. For Line 5, the station had a ridership of 3,578,110 (9,803 passengers per day), reflecting a decrease of 46,541 compared to 2018.[55][56]
In 2019 specifically, the Line 3 station ranked as the 38th busiest of the system's 195 stations and the sixth busiest on the line. The Line 5 station ranked 155th in the system and was the fifth busiest on the line.[55]
| Annual passenger ridership (Line 3)[b] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Ridership | Average daily | Rank | % change | Ref. |
| 2025 | 9,968,302 | 27,310 | 30/195 | +5.73% | [1] |
| 2024 | 9,428,172 | 25,760 | 31/195 | +3.86% | [1] |
| 2023 | 9,077,998 | 24,871 | 29/195 | +2.30% | [1] |
| 2022 | 8,873,704 | 24,311 | 26/195 | +41.34% | [1] |
| 2021 | 6,278,397 | 17,201 | 33/195 | −7.90% | [57] |
| 2020 | 6,817,252 | 18,626 | 33/195 | −40.01% | [58] |
| 2019 | 11,364,171 | 31,134 | 38/195 | −3.38% | [55] |
| 2018 | 11,761,940 | 32,224 | 35/195 | −0.50% | [56] |
| 2017 | 11,820,693 | 32,385 | 36/195 | +5.19% | [59] |
| 2016 | 11,237,304 | 30,703 | 43/195 | −5.01% | [60] |
| Annual passenger ridership (Line 5)[b] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Ridership | Average daily | Rank | % change | Ref. |
| 2025 | 3,060,889 | 8,385 | 149/195 | −8.70% | [1] |
| 2024 | 3,352,554 | 9,159 | 135/195 | −1.93% | [1] |
| 2023 | 3,418,439 | 9,365 | 124/195 | +15.00% | [1] |
| 2022 | 2,972,607 | 8,144 | 133/195 | +23.14% | [1] |
| 2021 | 2,414,062 | 6,613 | 125/195 | +8.25% | [57] |
| 2020 | 2,230,054 | 6,093 | 146/195 | −37.68% | [58] |
| 2019 | 3,578,110 | 9,803 | 155/195 | −1.28% | [55] |
| 2018 | 3,624,651 | 9,930 | 154/195 | −0.37% | [56] |
| 2017 | 3,638,243 | 9,967 | 152/195 | +4.42% | [59] |
| 2016 | 3,484,215 | 9,519 | 151/195 | −8.53% | [60] |
Notes
- The data here is limited to the most recent ten years to avoid excessive listings; earlier figures can be found in this page's history or on the Mexico City Metro website. To calculate the average daily ridership, the annual total is divided by 365 days (366 in leap years), with decimals omitted from the result. Each station per line is ranked individually, as the system counts transfer stations separately. The percentage change is calculated automatically using the data from the current year and the previous year.
- Estación del Metro La Raza. Mexican Spanish pronunciation: [la 'ra.sa] ⓘ. The name of the station literally means "The Race"; however, its phrasal sense means "the People".[2]
