Mar 27, 2013

The Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES) has approved a loan to the state government of Rio de Janeiro in the amount of R$ 4.3 billion. The resources are earmarked to implement infrastructure for Line 4 of Rio de Janeiro’s subway, which will connect Barra da Tijuca, on the west side of the city, to Ipanema, in the south zone.

Approved financing accounts for 48.4% of the total amount of the project. In January 2012, the BNDES had already approved financing in the amount of R$ 126.3 million, aimed only at studies and projects related to Line 4 of Rio de Janeiro’s subway.

The project for this new line also plans to expand the General Osório station in Ipanema, and implement integration between Lines 1 and 4. The subway expansion will add approximately 16 km and 7 new stations (including the expansion of General Osório station) to Rio de Janeiro's subway network. Some 27,550 new jobs are expected. Of this total, some 7,650 are direct and 19,900 are indirect jobs.

Implementing Line 4, as established in the Master Plan for Urban Transport (PDTU) in Rio de Janeiro, was not part of the city’s plans made with the International Olympic Committee (IOC), at the time Rio tendered its bid to host the 2016 Olympic Games.
Later, the state government incorporated the undertaking to connect Barra to the south zone via Line 4 of the subway.

The connection will be between the Jardim Oceânico station, in the neighborhood of Barra da Tijuca, and General Osório station in Ipanema. Regardless of the Olympic commitment, this meets an important demand for public transport and is a permanent legacy of Rio 2016 for the city’s transport system.