Ferrmed denounces that "billions of euros" for the Mediterranean Corridor have actually been used to connect Madrid

BrusselsA new outcry of protest has emerged from the main lobby group for the Mediterranean Corridor in Brussels. The president of Ferrmed, Joan Amorós, denounced the situation in statements to the media from the EU capital. the historical lack of investment Amorós, who criticized the state of the railway infrastructure, asserted that "the billions of euros in investments they claim to have made" in the Mediterranean Corridor have actually served to connect various points on the Iberian Peninsula with the Spanish capital. "When they say they've made so many investments in the Mediterranean Corridor, I reply: 'Yes, yes, many investments, but if we look closely, they've all been for going to Madrid,'" he added.

The president of the railway lobby gave several examples. "When the high-speed train reaches Camp de Tarragona, does it head towards Valencia? No, towards Madrid," he said. He also criticized the fact that investments to improve connections to Alicante and Murcia, among others, benefited the Spanish capital. "The entire connection they've made, which is over 200 kilometers, goes from Antequera to Granada," he stated.

In this regard, Amorós emphasized that the investments actually being made in the Mediterranean Corridor, which should connect the French border to Algeciras, are minimal. The president of Ferrmed ​​criticized the fact that the only work being carried out on the infrastructure is simply to change the track gauge on all sections without taking into account future traffic, leading him to predict that shortly after the renovations are completed, the track capacity will already be insufficient. "Perhaps we'll manage for three or four years, but after that, we won't," Amorós said.

The railway lobby has once again called for the doubling of the Mediterranean Corridor's rail lines, and the organization's president has asserted that some €18 billion in investment is needed to complete it. "If they don't put that money in—and I'm not saying all at once, but over the next few years—it's going to collapse," said the president of Ferrmed.

A pilot project

Ferrmed, along with other railway organizations across the European Union, has also advocated for the implementation of the +FIRRST system (Integrated, Flexible, and Rapid Rail Transport System). This is a new integrated combined transport system that would be "fully aligned with road transport" and capable of meeting "real-time daily demand at all locations." The aim is to carry out a pilot test of the +FIRRST system on two railway infrastructures with Catalan participation. One line would connect Rotterdam and Barcelona, passing through cities such as Antwerp, Brussels, and Paris. The other would link Barcelona and Duisburg, passing through hubs such as Marseille, Lyon, Luxembourg, and Cologne.