Spanish railway news – Page 17
-
NewsFirst trainset for Rielsfera low cost high speed rail services heads to Spain
SPAIN: The first of nine double-deck TGV Duplex trainsets being modified for use by SNCF’s Spanish subsidiary Rielsfera was despatched from the Technicentre Est-Européen at Pantin in France on June 6 following the installation of signalling and train protection equipment needed for operation in Spain.
-
NewsSan Sebastián’s ‘Mole’ breaks through
SPAIN: On May 20, a 2·1 km tunnel was holed through in San Sebastián which will form part of a 4·2 km cross-city corridor for the metre gauge railway through the city operated by Euskotren, known colloquially as El Topo (the mole).
-
NewsETCS tested in Galicia as high speed corridor nears completion
SPAIN: A series of high speed test runs using ETCS Level 2 were made over the 111 km section of high speed line between Zamora and Pedralba de la Pradería in Galicia on May 15-19. A Class 112 electric trainset made a series of trips under simulated ...
-
NewsStation passenger flows modified to reduce infection risk
SPAIN: As Covid-19 lockdown measures are eased and passenger numbers increase, pedestrian flows at Madrid Chamartín station have been modified to provide one-way routes to segregate entering and leaving passengers. This aims to reduce the risk of spreading infections between people heading in opposite directions. Particular attention ...
-
NewsRENFE introduces personalised tickets
SPAIN: National operator RENFE has introduced personalised tickets for passengers travelling on AVE, Larga Distancia, Avant and Alvia services and all other trains where seats reservations are obligatory. Purchasers are required to provide mobile phone numbers and other contact information, with their privacy protected under national and ...
-
Metro Report InternationalIntelligently-controlled ventilation for Barcelona metro
SPAIN: Engineering and technology group SENER and Barcelona metro operator FMB have launched the RESPIRA project to install ‘intelligently controlled’ ventilation systems to improve passenger comfort at stations.
-
NewsRENFE ticket offices go cashless
SPAIN: National operator RENFE stopped accepting cash payments for tickets at booking offices with effect from March 27, citing hygiene reasons. The measure will last as long as the duration of coronavirus lockdown, now prolonged at least until mid-April. Credit and debit cards are now the only ...
-
NewsRENFE seeks metre-gauge DMUs to cover rolling stock shortage
SPAIN: Following a spate of air-conditioning failures which left it without any serviceable DMUs for a period during summer 2019, national narrow gauge operator RENFE Ancho Metrico — formerly FEVE — is seeking second-hand vehicles ahead of the busy summer period. Photo: Mike Bent One of RENFE’s existing ...
-
Metro Report InternationalCádiz tram-train testing underway
SPAIN: Following authorisation by notified body CETREN on March 13, test running is set to begin this month along the full 24 km length of the tram-train route between Chiclana de la Frontera and Cádiz. Initially planned to open in 2017, the tram-train project covers construction of ...
-
Metro Report InternationalVitoria-Gasteiz tram extension plans released for public consultation
SPAIN: Details of the proposed 6 km tram extension connecting central Vitoria-Gasteiz to the district of Zabalgana were released for public consultation on March 9. The €120m project includes the acquisition of 14 trams and several ticketing machines for €61m, as well as the construction of 11 ...
-
Metro Report InternationalBarcelona introduces 105 smart buses
SPAIN: MAN Truck & Bus announced it had completed delivery of 105 Lion‘s City buses to Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona on March 5. Ordered under a €37·7m fleet renewal contract signed in 2019, the vehicles will operate on most routes. All were delivered between December 2019 and ...
-
NewsNarrow gauge line resignalling contract awarded
SPAIN: ADIF has awarded CAF Signalling a €19·8m, 23-month contract to replace the life-expired telephone-based block signalling system at the western end of the metre-gauge Ferrocarril de La Robla route between Bilbao and León. The contract covers the section between the current temporary terminus at León Asunción-Universidad ...
-
NewsSpanish infrastructure managers fined for inflated access charges
SPAIN: Competition regulator CNMC has fined infrastructure managers ADIF and ADIF Alta Velocidad for imposing excessive access charges. However, under current railway legislation, the maximum fine is just €6 300, which CNMC believes is too low to enable it to perform its duties as a regulator. For ...
-
Metro Report InternationalVitoria-Gasteiz light rail extension awarded
SPAIN: A 24-month contract to construct a 2·5 km extension to the 9·5 km light rail network in Vitoría-Gasteiz was awarded to a consortium formed by Tecsa Altuna and Uría on February 21. The metre-gauge extension would link Florida tram stop with Salburua. The Tecsa Altuna/Uría consortium’s ...
-
Metro Report InternationalMadrid invests €35m in electric bus fleet
The latest version of the Tecnobús Gulliver SPAIN: Madrid’s municipal transport company EMT has put out a €35m tender for the purchase of 50 electric buses. The winning bidder must deliver all vehicles between September 1 and December 18 of this year. Describing the contract as ‘a ...
-
NewsEffects of operating freight trains on high speed lines to be studied
SPAIN: ADIF has commissioned Sener Ingeniería y Sistemas to study the effects of passenger and freight trains passing on mixed-traffic sections of the 1 435 mm gauge high speed network. The 16-month project will include field tests to observe and analyse the aerodynamic forces exerted when 120 ...
-
Metro Report InternationalMadrid Line 4 modernisation reaches halfway point
SPAIN: Metro de Madrid’s €47m modernisation of Line 4 is more than 50% complete and the small-profile line is expected to reopen by the middle of next month. The upgrading work will see legacy signalling renewed in the tunnels and the installation of rigid catenary, allowing more ...
-
Metro Report InternationalVitoria-Gasteiz tram network extended
SPAIN: A 1·4 km southern extension of the Vitoria-Gasteiz tram network opened on February 15. The metre gauge extension runs from Angulema stop to Unibertsitatea Universidad via the stations of Florida and Hegoalde. The section between Hegoalde and Unibertsitatea Universidad is single track. A 2·5 km extension ...
-
NewsHigh speed line signalling contract renewed
SPAIN: Infrastructure manager ADIF has awarded Thales a €68·8m contract to continue to undertake preventive and corrective maintenance of signalling and traffic control systems on the Madrid – Sevilla and Córdoba – Málaga high speed lines for a further 48 months. Thales now has similar contracts covering ...
-
NewsEU co-financing for Galician high speed line
SPAIN: The European Commission is to provide a €226m grant to support the €2·1bn cost for constructing 48·5 km of the 83·3 km Lubián – Taboadela section of the high speed line running north west from Olmedo to Zamora and Ourense. The route traverses a remote mountainous ...