The current system is 34 km (21 mi) long and has twenty stations, which began partial public service on June 11, 2014.

As part of the efforts to implement integrated transportation in Greater Salvador, the subway assumes the role of structural trunk system, while the others must be complementary and feeder.

[3] Currently, the urban transportation system in Salvador is underdeveloped and largely road-based, causing significant congestion and delays.

For this reason the municipality and the state, together with the World Bank, have been involved since 1992 in the design and implementation of a transportation strategy.

[6] The current route of Line 1 begins at the underground Lapa station, and runs for 1.4 kilometres (0.87 mi) in subway tunnels, before emerging to the surface.