Quito Metro train halts due to technical fault, passengers evacuated

Disruption struck Quito's Metro on the morning of August 17, 2026, when a train traveling north from the San Francisco station experienced an electromechanical alert, halting its progress. The automated safety protocol brought the train to a standstill on the platforms, necessitating the evacuation of passengers.

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The system activated an automatic safety braking protocol upon reaching San Francisco station.

The incident, which occurred around 10:55 a.m. in the historic center's San Francisco station, triggered a temporary suspension of new passenger entries. To manage the situation, train circulation in the south-north direction was restricted to the segment between Quitumbe and La Magdalena stations while the stalled unit was addressed.

Passengers who had been waiting on the platform since 10:45 a.m. expressed frustration due to initial delays in receiving information about the service resumption. As a resolution, affected travelers were offered compensation tickets to continue their journeys once the situation normalized.

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The doors of access to the station were temporarily closed to new passengers to avoid saturation on platforms and ticket offices.

After an eight-minute resolution period, the technical anomaly was cleared. The entire incident lasted approximately 10 minutes, and by 12:00 p.m., train circulation throughout the entire underground network was fully restored. Quito Metro officials stated that such automatic alerts are standard safety features incorporated into the fleet to protect passengers.

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The route comprised solely between Quitumbe and La Magdalena.