The tunnel boring machine working on Barcelona's L9 metro extension is expected to reach FGC El Putxet station this month, according to reporting published on Thursday 9 July. If that milestone is met, about one kilometre of tunnelling will remain before the machine reaches Lesseps.

That matters for residents in the upper part of the city because the works have returned to the spotlight after the Putxet sinkhole linked to the project. For commuters, El Putxet is planned as a future interchange between the metro and Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya, the Catalan government's railway network.

El Putxet stop would mark the next key stage

The machine is drilling beneath the Bonanova area on its way to El Putxet, according to the source story by El Periódico, republished with the publication date by QOSHE. The same report says the machine is expected to pass beneath the affected buildings in the Putxet area shortly and then stop for a scheduled inspection and maintenance check.

Separate source material says the latest projection is for a new operational L9/L10 section with four new stations to open by the end of 2027. Another report on the line says the most recent forecast was for the boring machine to reach Lesseps during 2026, before four more stations open in 2027.

The projection is that a new operational section of the L9/L10 with four new stations will open by the end of 2027.

Sinkhole has intensified attention on the project

The latest construction update comes after a sinkhole opened in Putxet on Tuesday 7 July. According to ARA, the collapse measured eight metres across and four metres deep and was caused by works on metro line 9 in Sant Gervasi - la Bonanova.

ARA reported that eight buildings on Rubinstein, Teodora Lamadrid and Sant Gervasi de Cassoles streets were evacuated. In total, 93 flats were affected, and the city's social emergency and crisis centre attended 85 people that day. No injuries were reported.

According to the same report, the Minister of Territory, Slvia Paneque, said sensors installed in buildings and street elements detected an "abnormally high" increase in vertical movement between 7am and 8am, measuring displacements of 4 millimetres. Technicians and firefighters then inspected the area, detected the sinkhole and widened the safety perimeter as the day went on.

  • Expected next tunnelling milestone: El Putxet in July
  • Distance then remaining to Lesseps: about one kilometre
  • Sinkhole date: Tuesday 7 July 2026
  • Sinkhole size reported by ARA: eight metres wide and four metres deep
  • Buildings evacuated: eight
  • Flats affected: 93

For now, the clearest confirmed timetable in the supplied source material is that the next L9/L10 section with four stations is projected to open by the end of 2027.

Primary sources: tmb.cat. Reported by Source Text Link, Pere Roca Soler, Meritxell M. Pauné, Gerard Pruna, Natàlia Vila, Rubén González, David León Himelfarb, metrolinemap.com, El Periódico, Jordi Palmer, catalannews.com, Jordi Martín, lavanguardia.com, Arnau Raimundo, El Periódico Barcelona.