- The contract includes the adaptation of the gauges in a total of 49 structures, between upper passes and walkways, and of a gauge of an upper pass located in Aranjuez (Madrid).
- The launch of the Algeciras-Zaragoza Ferrovaria Motorway, with an investment of 500 million euros, is a boost to rail transport and a strengthening of intermodality.
The Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility has listed for 10.61 million euros (VAT included) a contract, through Adif, to adapt to the services of Railroad Motorway (AF) in the Algeciras-Zaragoza corridor the upper passes of the Santa Cruz de Mudela (Ciudad Real)-San Fernando de Henares (Madrid) section and a higher pass in Aranjuez (Madrid) of the Madrid Chamartín-Valencia Norte line.
The contract provides for the implementation of actions to adapt the gauges of a total of 49 structures, between upper passes and walkways, of the aforementioned section. These works include different actions in infrastructure, superstructure, electrification and replacement of affected services.
In total, there are 30 affected structures in which work will be carried out to adjust the contact wire. The rest of the performances are:
-Ten of catenary adjustment and contact thread.
-Six of track recesses and catenary adjustment.
-One of demolition, new structure and catenary adjustment.
-Two of demolition and catenary adjustment.
On the other hand, with respect to the Madrid Chamartín-Valencia Norte line, the project contemplates the adaptation of the gauge of the passage at the level located at the kilometric point 48/600, in the municipality of Aranjuez, to proceed to the adjustment of the height of the contact wire of the catenary.
Investment plan
The Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility has an ambitious investment plan in place with more than 500 million euros for the implementation of Railway Highway services throughout the Algeciras-Madrid-Zaragoza route. This plan will be decisive to boost the increase in the share of rail transport, both in the central branch of the Mediterranean Corridor and the Atlantic, in addition to strengthening intermodality in the Iberian Peninsula with traffic between Europe and Morocco.
Regarding the adaptation of the railway gauge between the Port of the Bay of Algeciras to the terminal of Zaragoza Plaza, 182 structures will be acted on: 43 tunnels, 131 upper passages and 8 metal bridges.
In addition, work is under way to extend the gauze of 26 tunnels and 40 upper passes located between San Fernando de Henares (Madrid) and Zaragoza. The actions of this typology that will be carried out in the stretch between Algeciras and San Fernando de Henares are in the contracting phase.
Also, through Adif, the extension of roads to 750 m will be carried out in a total of 17 stations, which will strengthen the efficiency and competitiveness of the route; as well as the consolidation works of the slope of Almargin (Malaga), where platform and track will be renewed in 7 km; an action that will improve the operation of the infrastructure for all traffic of the Bobadilla-Algeciras section.
The investments include the implementation of the Banalized Automatic Blockade (BAB) between Guadalajara and Calatayud, a system that allows the circulation of trains in both directions of the two tracks, improving the reliability of the facilities, increasing their capacity and making railway circulations more flexible.
This action is executed in parallel to the adaptation of the gauges between San Fernando de Henares and Zaragoza.
Drive to intermodality
For the Algeciras-Zaragoza itinerary there will be two daily circulations per direction in the initial phase, which will be extended to three daily trains per direction one year after the start of the service with trucks with origin/destination Morocco, to which are added two daily trains (one per direction) from Huelva to Zaragoza, with trucks with origin/destination Canarias and around Huelva, and four other daily trains (two per direction) between Seville and Zaragoza, with trucks with origin/destination Puerto de Sevilla and the rest of Andalusia.
In this way, approximately 12,000 km will be carried out daily and about 360 trucks will be transported on this itinerary, avoiding 360,000 km of truck traffic on the road per day.
Two itineraries already in service and more than 20 in process
The AF is a freight transport service that loads road trailers or semi-trailers, using specialized wagons. The initiative offers a competitive and collaborative logistics solution with significant savings in both external costs and GHG emissions. Road emissions compared to railways are 4.7 times higher (annual savings: 620.000 t CO2).
Transportes already has two AF itineraries in service: Valencia-Madrid (in Iberian width) and Barcelona-Le Perthus (in standard width). It also works on more than 20 itineraries, both in Iberian width and in standard width, after receiving, through its Support and Advisory Office of the AAFF (OAA), the interest of logistics operators, port authorities and railway companies.
The deployment of the AAFF is part of the set of actions that are already underway (development of strategic logistics nodes, ferroport connection, etc.). to increase freight transport by rail in Spain, with the aim of advancing a more sustainable, competitive, multimodal and secure mobility.
European funding
The implementation of the Railway Highway between Algeciras and Zaragoza has European funding through the “Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan. Funded by the European Union – NextGenerationEU”.