The Minister of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda, Raquel Sánchez, signed today in the Alcázar of Seville the agreement between Mitma and the Junta de Andalucía to cofinance the construction of the northern section of line 3 of the Metro, where she highlighted the decisive role of the Government of Spain in promoting this project.
“We have valued this project without being the holder of the competences and without being obliged to contribute, because this Government will always defend the general interest, welfare, the right to mobility and the health of citizens. We will never hesitate to collaborate with the rest of the public authorities,” said the minister during the signing ceremony, in which the Councilor for Development, Articulation of the Territory and Housing of the Junta de Andalucía, Marifrán Carazo, also participated, and which was assisted by the President of the Autonomous Community, Juan Manuel Moreno Bonilla; the Government delegate in Andalusia, Pedro Fernández; and the Mayor of Seville, Antonio Muñoz.
In her speech, the head of Mitma assured that under the heading of the agreement, the commitment made by the Ministry to provide half of the 1,301.3 million euros (VAT included) budgeted for the construction of the northern section of line 3 is materialized, and recalled that without the participation of the Government “this work would be impossible to execute”.
“We deliver on what we promise,” he added, referring to the commitment announced by the Ministry to provide one euro for every euro invested by the Board. Thus, with the signing of the agreement, Mitma is expected to finance the expansion with approximately 650.6 million euros.
“It never crossed our minds to profile ourselves. Only the general interest moves us,” said the minister, who has not hesitated to remember that the Government has already actively collaborated in making other basic infrastructures for the mobility of Andalusians such as the Malaga metro and line 1 of the Seville metro a reality.
The Convention
As stated in the agreement, Mitma will make a first transfer to the Board of 20.2 million euros before June 30, 2023 as an advance payment to start the works. From 2024, the following contributions will be made before December 31 of each year depending on the investments executed and justified by the Andalusian Government.
Thus, the Board now has the necessary financial support to start the work, so Raquel Sánchez has encouraged those responsible to “bid and start executing the works as soon as possible, for the benefit of the citizens of Seville”.
In particular, the text states that each administration will contribute 50% of the cost of the works of the northern section of line 3 of the Metro, as well as that of the direction of works, technical assistance, environmental control, quality control, coordination of safety and health of the works, replacement of affected services and expropriations.
The model chosen for the development of line 3 consists of a first phase of execution of the works within eight years through the tender of the construction contracts by the Junta de Andalucía, financed with the contributions of both administrations, and a second phase of operation and maintenance that will be carried out by the Junta de Andalucía, and where appropriate, with the participation of the local administrations in a similar way to line 1.
The northern section of line 3 of the Seville Metro consists of a double track, mostly underground, which has a length of about 7,550 meters. This stretch begins in the northern part of the city, next to the SE-20 road in Pino Montano, and extends to the Prado de San Sebastián area, where it will connect with line 1.
This northern stretch has 12 stations, one of them on the surface and eleven underground. In addition, it includes a technical branch of about 1,350 m for the connection with workshops and garages.
Commitment to sustainable mobility
The expansion of the Seville metro is part of Mitma’s strategy to promote safe and sustainable mobility and to prioritize and stimulate the use of collective transport, especially low-emission transport such as rail.
“Improving the quality of life in our cities and achieving environmentally friendly mobility is the backbone of the political action of the Ministry that I represent,” explained the minister during the signing of the agreement. A bet that has a great exponent in the policies approved to give an effective response to the economic consequences of the war in Ukraine, such as the gratuitousness of the subscriptions of Neighbourhoods, conventional Media Distancia and state bus lines, and the discounts in the other means of collective public transport for habitual travelers.
“The public transport bonuses are allowing us to reduce energy dependency, facilitate the ecological transition and above all combat the rise in prices”, said Raquel Sánchez, who pointed out that, for example, a user of the unlimited monthly subscription for the six areas of the Vicinity of Seville will save up to 1,327.2 euros in 2023 thanks to the decision of the Government to extend the service free of charge throughout the year. Or a family of four members that buys the unlimited monthly subscription for three areas of the Hispanic network, the savings is 3,381.6 euros per year.
“These are measures that reach into people’s pockets. That’s why we bet as never before on public transport and we will always support projects such as the one that begins its journey today,” said the head of the Department.
In this sense, the project to expand line 3 of the Seville metro fits perfectly with the objectives of the Safe, Sustainable and Connected Mobility Strategy 2030, based on international commitments, such as the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations and the Paris Agreement, as well as the principles of the European Green Pact.
Mitma investments in Seville
To conclude his speech, Raquel Sánchez highlighted the Ministry’s unequivocal commitment to the development of infrastructure in the city of Seville where, in addition to the extension of line 3 of the Metro, work is being done on several large projects.
In this regard, the minister has announced that the drafting of the informative study for the railway connection between Santa Justa Station and San Pablo Airport will be awarded very soon,
In addition, in terms of roads, he has referred to the works of expansion of the Centennial Bridge, which will relieve the bottleneck that is generated at this key point of the SE-30 bypass round. Works exceeding 120 million euros, counting on the investment already made in the connections for the diversion of traffic.
Finally, the owner of Mitma referred to the SE-40 bypass motorway, in which more than 20 kilometers have already been put into service, and, in particular, to the unblocking of the stretch between Coria del Río and Dos Hermanas with the preliminary project submitted to public information as a viable and realistic solution that ensures efficiency from the technical, environmental, safety, conservation and sustainability point of view over time.