Light Rail

The 5 line 82 km Métro Léger de Tunis opened in 1985. Although sometimes referred to by locals as the "light subway", perhaps because it was originally planned as a subway, the metro is completely above ground.  Though primarily street running, it does go underground at some of the city's larger intersections. Aside from Cairo and Algiers, it is the only metro system on the African continent. This may change with the recent go aheads for full metros in  Lagos and Casablanca.

There are two 7 km extensions under construction.  In 2004, the director of the SMLT (pronounced "Smelt") announced that the system was at the brink of capacity at 115 million souls per year, and suggested that a four line 70 km heavy metro be built.

Contact: TGM, 78 Avene Mohamed V, Tunis, Tunisia



Light Metro

This is a 19 km commuter rail line by Western definition, though it uses metro-like cars very similar to those in Cairo. It is known both as the Light Metro and the TGM, or Tunis-Goulette-La Marsa, after the cities it serves. Openening in 1872, this was Tunisia's first rail line. Fortunately, it still rocks the Kasbah even today.

Seimens page with map
TGM Wikipedia page
History of the Tunis metro
Official Home Page
Tunis metro photos from the tram picturebook

Do the vehicles look a lot like the Hannover, Germany LRT?

Athough Tunisia has no true subway as of yet, there are plans for a metro connecting Sicily with Tunis,. which would run through a 60 km long tunnel.