- The government delegate attended in Madrid the rubric of the agreement, which responds, he said, “to the value of the word given after the numerous meetings that the mayor and I have had with the Ministry to achieve it”
- Vélez appreciates the commitment of the Minister and the Secretary of State for this and many other “unprecedented” investments in the Region of Murcia
- The Ministry will collaborate to define the most appropriate connection with the railway mode and will participate in the financing of the works
- The City Council will be responsible for the development of the extension project to the Barrio del Carmen and its connection with the railway mode
April 3, 2023. The government delegate attended today in Madrid the signing of the protocol between the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda and the city of Murcia for the development of the tram in the neighborhood of Carmen, which have been initialled by the Secretary of State, David Lucas, and the mayor of the city, José Antonio Serrano.
José Vélez thanked the minister herself and the Secretary of State for their commitment to make this agreement fruitful.
“It is a great satisfaction, because there have been many months of continuous work in which both the mayor and I have had several days of work in the ministry to advance this agreement that is consolidated today and that responds to the value of the word given. This is a very important step, because getting something for Murcia is also getting it for the Region,” he said after the signing ceremony.
The purpose of this protocol is to express the desire for collaboration between the Ministry and the city of Murcia to develop this project.
The Secretary of State conveyed to the councillor his satisfaction with the collaboration between both administrations, while specifying that this project will be a continuation of the success demonstrated by the streetcar in the city of Murcia, a modern and sustainable transport solution that has improved the mobility and quality of life of its citizens, which has reduced traffic congestion, improved connection and travel times between neighborhoods and decreased the emission of greenhouse gases in the city.
The protocol
Mitma has among its objectives the promotion of a safe and sustainable mobility of citizens, an objective that it develops within the framework of the Strategy of Safe, Sustainable and Connected Mobility, which contemplates the stimulation of collective and shared means of transport and, especially, those of low emissions such as rail transport in general and in particular the tramway.
In this context, the Ministry, within its policy of promoting rail transport and sustainable mobility, has considered it of interest to collaborate in the development of this project, in which:
-Mitma will collaborate to define the most appropriate connection with the railway mode and will participate in the financing of the works, providing, at most, up to a third of the estimated amount of the same.
-The City of Murcia will be responsible for the development of the project in its entirety (phases of design, construction, conservation and exploitation).
The Protocol shall be valid for one year, extendable by agreement of the parties, and the subsequent signing of an agreement that develops and concretizes its content shall be necessary.
Context
The establishment of the tram in the city of Murcia has been a very important advance to improve its mobility. With its current configuration with Line 1 of a total length of 28 km, in service since May 2011, it solves the mobility of the northern area of the city by its two major axes of residential development, such as the Avda. by Juan Carlos I and the Avda. by Juan de Borbón. In addition, the shuttle from the Urbanization “Los Rectores” to UCAM, in the hamlet of Guadalupe, creates a tram axis that serves to partially structure urban transport in the areas of the west of the municipality.
According to the Mobility Strategy of the city, its extension from the Plaza Circular to the Barrio del Carmen and its connection with the railway mode will structure the mobility of the city between the north, south and between the neighborhoods on both sides of the Segura River. In addition, it will improve commercial areas and general activity, decongest traffic, and improve environmental quality.