São Paulo trains accumulate failures amid Tarcísio's retreats on concessions

Concession lines and those operated by CPTM (Companhia Paulista de Trens Metropolitanos) have accumulated failures over the past year in São Paulo.

The problems affecting thousands of passengers include slow service, electrical failures that interrupt journeys, and complete shutdowns of branch lines, as seen on Thursday (23).

Before this week's failure, which triggered chaos in the transport system serving the state capital and cities in the metropolitan region, the problems had already become part of passengers' daily experience in recent periods.

In March, before being handed over to the concessionaire Trivia, Line 12-Sapphire experienced slowdowns following a technical problem with a track-switching device. The branch line has also recently recorded problems following acts of vandalism and theft of electrical cables.

There is no public data that records failures in São Paulo's rail transport system and allows for a unified comparison over time.

On June 15, a power system failure on CPTM's Line 10-Turquoise led passengers to change trains mid-route as service was interrupted. On July 3, still under the state company's management, trains on Line 11-Coral operated with slowdowns and longer stops at stations.

Problems have also been seen on other branch lines, such as Lines 8-Diamond and 9-Emerald, managed by Motiva. In February, a problem with an empty train interrupted service on a section of Line 8. In April, a problem with the overhead network on Line 9 forced trains to operate on a single track.

Following Thursday's breakdown, Artesp (São Paulo State's Regulatory Agency for Delegated Public Transport Services) ruled that the state company must resume operation of Lines 11, 12, and 13 for at least 90 days.

The auction that determined the concession of the three branch lines took place in March 2025 and was won by the Comporte Participações group, founded by Nenê Constantino, from the founding family of airline Gol. In addition to Trivia, the business group controls Tic Trens, the operator of Line 7-Ruby.

Following Thursday's failure, Trivia stated that it is maintaining dialogue with the government and Artesp. "The concessionaire reiterates its technical and operational capacity to manage the lines, and is fully available to act in cooperation, always prioritizing safety and the provision of quality service to the public," it said.

For Cláudio de Senna Frederico, former secretary of metropolitan transport and vice president of ANTP (National Agency for Metropolitan Transport), concessions of metro-rail lines are not necessarily good or bad.

"There are examples that worked very well and others that made the system worse. In Paris and London, there were some privatization attempts, but they did not work in the long term. The European model is essentially state-run and unified. In Japan, however, there are several lines operated by companies that work very well," he said.

Frederico criticizes a "loss of unity and identity" in São Paulo's metro-rail system, with different companies operating simultaneously.

"The metro and the trains should be perceived by passengers as a single, centralized product, and not as a collection of 'little shops' with different colors, visual identities, and communications. Today, the system looks more like the bus model. When a problem occurs, passengers have difficulty knowing who to contact."

Setbacks

The concession contract for lines 11, 12, and 13 awarded to the company Trivia Trens included the reallocation of the 8,500-series trains from Line 10-turquoise — the most modern in the fleet operating on that branch (manufactured in 2015).

Older models, from the 7,000, 7,500, and 2070 series, were to remain on the last line under public management by CPTM (Companhia Paulista de Trens Metropolitanos).

Following pressure, including from passengers, the Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicanos) administration decided not to proceed with the reallocation and kept the 8,500-series trains on Line 10. The line also operates six 2070-series trains, manufactured in 2008, which are currently undergoing refurbishment and are expected to meet standards similar to the newer vehicles.

This was one of several reversals amid a string of problems in other concessions within the metro-rail system — one of Tarcísio's main campaign promises in 2022. He is now seeking reelection.

Line 10 is the only one that remains under CPTM's management. Transferring that branch was also part of Tarcísio's concession package, but the idea has cooled.

In May, Tarcísio stated that before granting the concession, the branch would need to be modernized. And that appears to be the direction things are heading.

"At this moment, the state's focus is on implementing the investments outlined in the concession contracts already signed and on improving the operational performance of those lines, while the structuring of the Line 10 project continues to be developed," the SPI (Secretariat for Investment Partnerships) said in a statement.

The modernization of Line 10 involves a complex package of works that, in total, is unlikely to be completed in less than five years and is estimated to cost around R$1.5 billion.

It includes the construction of new stations and the renovation of some existing ones, such as the century-old Rio Grande da Serra station. There are also structural investments, such as track signaling — which allows for reduced intervals between trains — as well as energy infrastructure and the construction of maintenance facilities.

"What the governor said on more than one occasion was about the intention to keep the line without ruling out a concession, and to make all the necessary investments to bring it up to the standard of the other lines," said CPTM president Michael Sotelo Cerqueira in an interview with Folha on Friday (24).

"There is a robust investment program within the concessions, even if the line remains under government management," Cerqueira said.

A potential reversal on the concession of Line 10 would come as no surprise given the governor's recent statements. Less than a month ago, he said he intends to abandon plans to concession the Line 17-gold and leave the management of that branch with the Metrô.

The line is part of a 2018 contract with ViaMobilidade, of the Motiva group, which also includes Line 5-lilac. The monorail was inaugurated on March 31 and is currently in an assisted operation phase under Metrô management, with reduced operating hours until October, when the private company was expected to take over.

"We have the ability to change our minds," he said during the inauguration of the Washington Luís station. "We don't grant concessions just for the sake of it. The reality is that Metrô is operating very well. What I'm thinking about is expanding the lines operated by Metrô," he stated.

In the interview, Tarcísio also noted the difficulty of attracting foreign operators. "And you also cannot concentrate all transportation in the hands of a few operators," he said.

Currently, of the six metropolitan train lines conceded to the private sector, four have participation from Grupo Comporte (lines 7-ruby, 11-coral, 12-sapphire and 13-jade). The other two, 8-diamond and 9-emerald, are operated by Motiva, which also controls lines 4-yellow and 5-lilac of the metro.