The contemporary metro, entirely aboveground, began construction in 1983, with funding from the
World Bank. The metro consists of the Center Line (with two branches, Center-1 and Center-2) and the South Line, which all radiate outward from Recife station. The stations were designed to include various non-written means of identification, as the
Northeast Region has a substantial rate of
illiteracy (13.9% as of 2019). In addition to audio messages announcing the name of the stop, there are visual cues: a different color is used on the walls of every station, and stations are uniquely identified with
pictograms, similar to the
Mexico City Metro. Center Line trains leaving Recife station have one of two destinations: Center-1 trains run to
Camaragibe, while Center-2 trains serve
Jaboatão dos Guararapes. The two branches run on the same tracks between Recife station and Coqueiral station, reusing the route of an old railway track, where the metro system was built. The South line runs from Recife station parallel to the shore of the Atlantic. The average distance between stations is of so the typical speed of the train is , but the maximum speed is . The
gauge is (
Irish gauge) and the trains are powered by
overhead lines.
Bus integration The system also includes several
bus lines linked from the terminals of bus/metro integration designated
SEI (
Sistema Estrutural Integrado - "Integrated Structural System") through which passengers may continue their travel on the same ticket. ==Lines==