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Issue 5 2011 / 22 September 2011 /
In 2010, the Infrastructure Extraordinary Plan (Plan Extraordinario de Infraestructuras (PEI)) of the Ministry of Public Works began, with expected tenders in the region of €17,000 million – the equivalent to 1.7% of Spanish GDP – which meant a turning point in the model used up until then in Spain to construct and maintain new public infrastructures.
The PEI envisages the application of Public Private Collaboration (PPC) to promote cooperation between public administrations and the private sector for the development and modernisation of infrastructures and public services of strategic interest. In this sense it is noteworthy that approximately 70% of investments will be allocated to railways to enhance suburban railway networks as well as freight transportation. (more…)
Rail industry news / 16 May 2011 /
Atlantic branch of Priority Project 3 (High speed railway axis of southwest Europe)
Selected under the 2010 TEN-T Annual Call, a study on the implementation of the high speed rail line between the Spanish cities of Vitoria and San Sebastián will receive €2.35 million in EU co-funding. The study, which will contribute to the realisation of Priority Project 3 (“High speed railway axis of southwest Europe”) will specifically look at track bed design and electrification along certain sections of the Vitoria-Bilbao-San Sebastián high speed line. (more…)
Issue 5 2010 / 20 September 2010 /
Spanish rail companies represent a pioneering industry that has become one of the main reference points in many transport projects worldwide due to their expertise and highly developed technological advances.
The Spanish rail industry has experienced significant growth during recent years as a result of the technological advances developed by companies in the sector, the quality of its products and services, and the high qualification of its professionals. (more…)
Issue 5 2010 / 17 September 2010 /
The Madrid–Castilla La Mancha–Comunidad Valenciana-Región de Murcia high-speed line is one of the greatest works in Spanish and the world’s civil engineering history, both for its length – 955km – and for the new technologies applied in its construction.
This line, in which €12.4 million have been invested, is one of the most important high-speed corridors in the Iberian Peninsula. The eastern region of the Iberian Peninsula is also known as the Levante region. Its route begins in the Madrid Puerta de Atocha station. It shares 29km with the currently operative Madrid–Seville/Málaga line, which is being split to achieve independent accesses for both lines. (more…)
Issue 4 2010 / 4 August 2010 /
Reduction of energy consumption has become a global concern, and the EU is committed to reducing its overall emissions to at least 20% below 1990 levels by 2020. In the transport sector, measures are focused on planning, infrastructure, modal change, the renewal of vehicles and also programmes for efficient driving.
Factors such as the low friction wheel-rail that allows coasting for long distances, electric traction which may allow the use of renewable energy, a capacity to transport large numbers of people and the possibility of adapting the number of coaches to demand, make the railways an efficient mode of transport. Additionally, railway transport is a guided path transport mode which allows the existence of electrification and facilitates traffic control and the automation of driving. (more…)
Issue 3 2010 / 31 May 2010 /
The aim of this article is to present the current situation of the ETCS deployment on the Spanish network managed by the Spanish Infrastructure Manager (Administrador de Infraestructuras Ferroviarias – ADIF). It covers the situation in the newly built High-Speed Network (UIC gauge) and the deployment over the existing conventional network (Iberian gauge – 1,638mm). An overview about the commissioning of the ETCS equipment is also presented. Finally, some punctuality figures are provided together with some conclusions about the deployment of ETCS. (more…)
Rail industry news / 3 March 2010 /
Bombardier Transportation has been awarded an order to deliver the BOMBARDIER INTERFLO 200 mainline signalling solution for the Albacete to La Encina section of the Madrid to Valencia – Alicante line in the Castilla la Mancha Region of Spain. (more…)
Issue 5 2009, Past issues / 26 September 2009 /
A double track of UIC European gage designed for maximum speeds of 350km/h will soon link the centre of Spain with the Mediterranean Sea and the Southeast of the Iberian Peninsula. The total length of the line is 940km – with a forecasted investment of €12.365 million – and will imply a significant change in the communications map when the Madrid-Cuenca-Valencia/Albacete section comes into operation in 2010. After this section, there will be a link with Alicante in 2012 and soon after another link to Murcia and Castellón.
Since facts and events are measured in time, the distance is more than ever a fight against the clock. Bringing the cities closer together is set in function of the time we spend on a train, thus the high-speed expands the human limits in everyday horizons.
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Issue 5 2009, Past issues / 26 September 2009 /
Neopul, in conjunction with two Spanish companies, has won the contract for the project to build a new high-speed railway line in Spain between Barcelona and the French border. To this end, a joint venture has been formed in which Neopul has a 38.25% stake.
The project consists of the execution of the construction design as well as maintenance of the OHLE (Overheard Line Equipment) infrastructure and associated systems on the Barcelona-Figueras section of the high-speed line that runs from Madrid-Zaragoza-Barcelona-French border. (more…)
Issue 5 2009, Past issues / 26 September 2009 /
The year 2008 was the 160th anniversary of railways in Spain, which is all the more significant because now in the 21st Century, railways have clearly been modernised and this modernisation process will continue in the coming years. In accordance with the Strategic Infrastructures and Transport Planes (PEIT), prepared by the Ministerio de Fomento (Ministry of Public Works) and approved at a Cabinet Meeting on 15th July 2005, railways must play a central role in the Spanish intermodal transport system, for both passengers and freight, in order to respond to the citizens’ mobility requirements, to contribute to social cohesion, providing a backbone for the land and sustainability, because of the environmental advantages that railways provide. (more…)
Issue 4 2009, Past issues / 21 July 2009 /
The effect of implementing a high-speed network in Spain has been incredibly positive and it has created a ‘before and an after’ effect in the Spanish railway sector. Not long ago, trains were competing against cars, but nowadays trains are in competition with planes and this radical change shows the technological jump that the railway sector is going through thanks to high-speed worldwide.
Talgo has always been at the forefront of railway technology and today it has become the Spanish reference in the high-speed selected club of manufacturers. Although a reality today, the challenge of high speed has always been on Talgo’s horizon for many decades and the result of its constant innovative efforts and investment in R&D paid off in 2001 by winning a contract to supply Renfe Operadora with 16 Talgo 350 high speed trains for the Madrid-Barcelona line. Some years later, in 2005, Talgo was again awarded a contract in another international tender launched by Renfe Operadora to supply 30 additional Talgo 350 train-sets and, thus, making Talgo the number one supplier of high-speed trains in the Spanish market.
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Issue 2 2009, Past issues / 26 March 2009 /
On 17 and 18 February 2009, European Railway Review organised the first ever Iberian Rail Development conference, held at the Lisbon Marriott Hotel, Portugal.
Attracting over 200 delegates, the conference was specifically developed to invite all industry personnel concerned with the ongoing developments for railway infrastructure and rolling stock in the Iberian region, and the links it has to the rest of Europe.
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