With the basic design still being drawn up, Line 22–Brown will arrive with the promise of taking passengers from Cotia to downtown São Paulo in up to 42 minutes. The plan is to have an underground subway train that avoids the miles-long traffic jams on the Raposo Tavares Highway.
An investment of approximately R$ 8.1 billion is estimated for civil works, systems, and infrastructure, with construction expected to take 8 years. Taking into account licensing, construction, and design, the estimated completion time is approximately 11 years, with the line set to open between 2032 and 2036.
According to the 2025 preliminary design , Line 22-Brown will be 29 to 31.3 kilometers long and will have 19 underground stations in São Paulo, Osasco, and Cotia. The plan is to connect one end to the other, departing from Sumaré Station, with integration with Line 2-Green, and extending to the Cotia Terminal.
With three tunnel boring machines operating in parallel on the construction of the same project, the connection approaches the scale of major projects such as Line 6-Orange. In addition to the tunnel boring machine, which excavates the ground, removes the soil, and lines the tunnel with concrete rings, the construction will also utilize NATM: a technique that uses the surrounding rock mass as support.
However, there is still no timeline for the start of construction, which depends on the completion of studies and contracts. Therefore, 2026 will be a year dedicated to the basic design of the section. According to published notices, the plans revolve around two major independent construction phases, allowing for simultaneous work on multiple fronts.
The phases of the Line 22-Brown expansion
Phase I – From Sumaré to Cotia-Km 26
Construction of the initial section will be carried out primarily by tunnel boring machines ( TBMs), with the goal of increasing speed and minimizing surface impact. For this reason, three TBM entry points are planned at locations such as Rio Pequeno, Reserva Raposo, and Parque Alexandra.
This route already ensures a major connection between São Paulo, Raposo, and Osasco, even before reaching the Cotiaterminal.
Phase II – Cotia-Km 26 to Cotia Terminal
Initially, the section did not include Cotia, but the Metro made changes to the route, which increased the cost of the preliminary design. The goal is to meet the growing demand in the region, which is still heavily dependent on buses.
In addition, the section calls for extending the line beyond the Cotia-Km 26 station to the Cotia Terminal. The method used will be NATM (conventionalexcavation ), which is best suited to the site’s geology.
Planned operation and capacity
According to studies by the Government of São Paulo, Line 22-Brown is expected to serve approximately 649,000 passengers per day. The plan is for the route to have headways of up to 123 seconds, with the possibility of reducing this to 100 seconds during peak hours. Additionally, capacity will exceed 45,000 passengers per hour in each direction.
The fleet is expected to consist of 48 trains, each with 5 cars , which are smaller than older trains and better suited to the newly designed platforms.
With a greater focus on regions such as Osasco and Cotia, the new route aims to relieve traffic congestion and reorganize the buses that serve the corridor. Consequently, the estimated travel time of 42 minutes will be advantageous, since trips on this stretch can currently exceed 2 hours during peak hours.
