[5] Construction of the line began during the first presidency of Alan García (1985–1990) with an initial seven stations, but the segment did not have the distance or demand required to make it commercially viable.

Thus, the project stalled and became mired in accusations of bribery[6] involving an investment of 226 million dollars co-financed by the Italian government.

[8] Between 1972 and 1973, the "Metrolima" consortium elaborated the technical-economical feasibility studies and the pre-project of the "Mass Rapid Transit System for Passengers in the Metropolitan Area of Lima and Callao", approved by the Government of Peru in 1974.

[9] In 1986, the first presidency of Alan García created the "Autonomous Authority for the Mass Transit Electrical Transport System Special Project" with the Supreme Decree N° 001-86 MIPRE, with degree of Law N° 24565.

Construction started by placing the first stone on October 18, 1986,[12] making its construction the main promise made in 1987 by the newly elected Mayor of Lima and member of the government party Jorge del Castillo.The work began with a maintenance facility in the district of Villa El Salvador, south of the city, where the trains were meant to be stored and receive preventive maintenance.

The municipalities crossed by the metro started to cover the unfinished segments in an attempt to diminish the negative impact on the urban landscape.

Aviación had pillars with grass in order to avoid the invasion of ambulatory commerce (which represented a large problem in Lima at the time).

Some districts also painted the columns and walls with images of Peruvian landscapes and nature, deeming the project as definitively cancelled.On August 5, 2001, the AATE (Electrical Train Autonomous Authority) was passed on to the Metropolitan Municipality of Lima through the Urgency Decree N° 058–2001.

In 2009, the government decided that the Ministry of Transport and Communications (MTC) would retake the administration of the AATE (Electrical Train Autonomous Authority).

It also put an entity called "Provias Nacional" in charge of organizing a public bid to select the consortium that would build the remaining sections of the project.

[17][18] The third segment of the line that connects Downtown Lima to the northeastern district of San Juan de Lurigancho opened for public service on July 25, 2014.

[20] The consortium "Nuevo Metro de Lima", consisting of the companies COSAPI (Peru), Impregilo, Ansaldo Breda & Ansaldo STS (Italy), Iridium, and Vialia (Spain) won the bid for the construction of Line 2 of the Lima Metro, and a segment of Line 4 that will connect it to the airport.

This fleet includes an additional 42 trains in order to be able to service with the adequate frequencies, contemplating 26 stations in total, the integral remodeling of the current stations and the revamping of wagons, including the installation of air conditioning among other facilities and 19 new Alstom trains similar to the 9000 Series on the Barcelona Metro.

Prior to July 2014, Line 1 was 21.48 kilometers (13.3 mi) long, operating from Villa El Salvador (where the maintenance depot is located) to the Miguel Grau station in Downtown Lima.

[24] The line will link the port of Callao in the west with the Historic Center of Lima, along with the eastern districts of Santa Anita and Ate.

Concurrently, the project also includes the construction of the first stage of line 4 (8 km), which will connect the system at Carmen de la Legua station to the International Airport.

[29] On May 9, 2012, the director of the Private Investment Promotion Agency (Proinversión), Hector Rene Rodriguez, announced that the MTC (Ministry of Transport and Communication) would construct Lines 2 and 4 simultaneously.