High-speed trains between Barcelona and Madrid have become 35% cheaper since 2019.

BarcelonaTrains are experiencing a golden age, with record-breaking years in a row and stations packed to the rafters. Everything accelerated after the pandemic, coinciding with the liberalization of high-speed trains that began in May 2021 with the arrival of the French operator Ouigo to cover the Barcelona-Madrid route, a corridor that had only been served by Renfe's AVE (High Speed Trains) for more than ten years. A month later, Renfe's low-cost option, AVLO, came into operation, and in 2022, it was the turn of the Italian company Iryo, which over the years extended competition to the rest of Spain's corridors. This competition has driven down ticket prices, while boosting ridership and leading to more incidents on routes that were not usually problematic.

This is demonstrated by the figures recorded by the various operators that cover the corridor between Barcelona and Madrid, the main one in Spain, with nearly 37% of total passengers and more than 100 daily journeys, according to data collected by the National Commission of Markets and Competition (CNMC). Ticket prices have fallen by 35% since 2019, before the pandemic and the entry of competitors. "Since the liberalization of the sector, high-speed rail has undergone an unprecedented transformation in Spain. The entry of new operators has boosted the market, favoring a very significant increase in demand and a drop in prices that has made trains much more accessible and attractive for millions of people," says Pedro García, General Manager of Europe for Trainline, whose activity in recent years has been significant.

The downward trend in prices continues in the first three months of this year. The average price of Renfe's AVLO trains was €37.80 (-3.7%), while Iryo's was €40.40 (-5.4%). AVE trains remain the most expensive, at €61.90 (-0.9%). Ouigo, the cheapest operator at €36.60, is the only one that has increased compared to last year: 5.6%. The total price of all trains brings the average price to €50.20 (-0.9%).

The price ranking of operators is completely reversed in terms of market share, which is closely linked to the increase in the number of seats offered by each company. In this sense, AVE trains are the ones that take the largest share of the pie, with 47.1% of all passengers, followed by Iryo trains, with 24.2%. The least popular are precisely those that offer the fewest seats: 15.2% of passengers choose Ouigo trains and 13.5% opt for AVLO trains. If the market share of AVE and AVLO trains is combined, Renfe holds 60.6% of demand. Last year, both AVLO and Iryo trains gained 2% share at the expense of Ouigo.

More passengers

As fares have fallen, ridership has skyrocketed. The connection between the two capitals recorded a total of 14.6 million passengers in 2024, a 6% increase compared to last year, almost matching the number of seats offered, which was 14.6 million, a 2.2% decrease. "At Trainline, we have seen sustained growth in searches and bookings on the most competitive routes," explains García, including Barcelona-Madrid, but also Madrid-Valencia and Madrid-Andalusia.

The Barcelona-Madrid corridor has seen years of growth since overcoming the impact of the pandemic, although the increases have slowed, especially last year. While in 2021 the number of passengers soared by 114.6%, two years later the increase was 34.6%. In the first quarter of 2025, the moderation in passenger numbers on the Barcelona-Madrid corridor continued, with a 4% increase, far from the double-digit growth recorded by other routes such as Madrid-Alicante (+16.8%), Madrid-Seville (+23.4%), or Madrid-Málaga/Granada (+14.5%), these two by 1', 1', 1', 1', 2', 2' by 2' by 2'. Revenue from ticket sales exceeded €597 million last year, some €60 million more than in 2023.

All of this has allowed trains to far surpass their great rivals, airplanes. High-speed travel has swept away air competition, as demonstrated by Vueling will cease operationsLast summer, the air shuttle was launched and left in the hands of Iberia and Air Europa. In Iberia's case, this is its most important national route, with half a century of experience, and offers 28 daily flights, while Air Europa, a far cry from this one, schedules four daily flights. In 2024, 81.5% of users preferred the train over the plane, a share that has continued to grow in recent years. The route that has swept the air is the one between Madrid and Zaragoza, with a 100% share.

Throughout Spain, high-speed train registrations also reached unprecedented levels, driven by Spanish government measures such as discounts for recurring and younger users. Nearly 40 million users traveled by high-speed train, 22% more than a year ago and 77% more than in 2019. "After three years of competition, the results are clear," the CNMC notes in the report. 2024 was also affected by the service stoppage caused by the Valencia DANA (High Speed Rail) system, as high-speed trains were suspended between late October and mid-November; they were later restored in record time.

Station saturation

One of the side effects of the increase in high-speed rail users has been the saturation of facilities that were not designed for so many passengers. This is even more evident when incidents at one operator affect the rest, as there is less room to maneuver to resolve them than when there was only one company. The clearest example is Sants station, where queues to get off the tracks clog the waiting area, making the necessary renovations even more obvious. With the liberalization, which has led to an occupancy rate close to 97.7% on the Barcelona-Madrid corridor, passenger traffic has grown by 61% at Sants, well above the 28% increase at Atocha, where the existence of two entrances dilutes its effect.

This is one of the reasons given by Adif, the infrastructure manager, for not authorizing double-deck trains—two different trains in a single convoy, which allow for double the number of seats. For the CNMC, limiting this option has "negative effects on the train's competitiveness" because it prevents Renfe, Iryo, and Ouigo from competing on price and further differentiating themselves from other options.