From milestone to milestone with Marie-Thérèse

Implenia has been building Toulouse's third metro line as part of a consortium since 2024, constructing almost 4 km of tunnels, four underground stations and a ventilation shaft for Line C. The 142-meter-long Marie-Thérèse tunnel boring machine has now reached another milestone.

The new metro line C for Toulouse will connect Colomiers and Labège in just 35 minutes. Its construction is an ambitious project that will make traffic flow more smoothly, reduce congestion and pollution in order to offer the inhabitants of the metropolis a better quality of life.

This lot includes:

the construction of a 3814 meter long tunnel with a diameter of 9.6 meters,
the construction of four underground stations at a depth of 24 to 39 meters,
1 ventilation shaft, foundation, earthworks and civil engineering works.

In a dense and complex urban environment characterized by old buildings and fragile existing infrastructures, the tunnel will be built with an earth pressure tunnel boring (EPB) machine equipped with the latest technological innovations.

The new metro line C for Toulouse will connect Colomiers and Labège in just 35 minutes

First milestone: Arrival in Bonnefoy

The 142-metre-long Marie-Thérèse de Villeneuve-Arifat tunnel boring machine began driving the tunnel from the Raisin station in October 2024. Due to the limited space in the starting shaft, the seven trailers of the back-up train were assembled in several phases. In January 2025, all the equipment was fully installed so that the tunnel boring machine could operate at full capacity.

On April 11, 2025, Marie-Thérèse reached its first destination after 872 meters of driving and the installation of 526 ring elements: the Bonnefoy station. This milestone marked almost a quarter of the total distance.

Marie-Thérèse at its interim destination: on April 11, 2025, the 142-metre-long tunnel boring machine reached Bonnefoy station after 872 meters of excavation

Marie-Thérèse reaches the Matabiau station

After covering a further 1,804 meters, Marie-Thérèse also reached Matabiau Gare station on 2 September. She will remain at the station for around a month to carry out shifting and maintenance work before setting off again in the direction of François Verdier. A final stretch of 1,285 meters awaits it there before it is expected to reach its destination next year.

The Matabiau station: On September 2, 2025, the tunnel boring machine arrived at the station, where it will remain for a month for relocation and maintenance work.

Happy about the project milestones achieved: Operations Manager Nicolas Margoloff

Operations Manager Nicolas Margoloff explains: "We are delighted with this new milestone in our project of the century, which presents us with new challenges every day. With a very professional and dedicated team, a great deal of expertise and commitment, we have managed to overcome all these hurdles - and are looking forward to the next stage of the project."