Rio metro line 3 works begin in Mar.

Construction of Rio de Janeiro city's metro line 3 is slated to begin in March, Rio de Janeiro state transport secretary Augusto Ariston announced. Ariston said this year's budget includes 30mn reais (US$11.2mn) to begin works on the line, which when complete will connect São Gonçalo with Rio and move close to 500,000 passengers/day. The 2.9bn reais project, which includes a tunnel across Guanabara bay, will require financing from the country's national development bank BNDES and the federal government. The Queiroz Galvão-Andrade Gutierrez-Carioca Engenharia-Camargo Correa consortium will build the 38km, 15-station line, while the winner of the operating concession will be responsible for installing equipment. Regarding the latter, a transport department spokesperson told BNamericas a bidding process has yet to be launched, and that news regarding the future operation of the line is expected at the onset of works. Rio Trilhos, a state government company, holds the operating concessions for the existing lines 1 and 2 that together move more than 400,000 passengers/day.