Two new inland lines and more AVE stops: the train map the Catalan government would like for 2050
Territori presents a strategy to transform the railway network over the next 25 years
BarcelonaIn 25 years, Catalonia could have between nine and ten million inhabitants, and as a result, train journeys recorded by the Metropolitan Transport Authority (ATM) could skyrocket to nearly 1.3 billion annually. That's two million more people and another 100 million annual journeys than the Catalan rail network currently handles. Faced with this scenario, Parliament demanded that the Government prepare, and the executive has set to work creating a roadmap to guide which actions should be prioritized over the next two and a half decades.
The Government approved a rail strategy this Tuesday containing 13 lines of action and 63 measures. However, this strategy only includes the general guidelines of what the executive believes should be done, but not specific actions to which the Government is committing or which, at least for now, it is requesting from Madrid. All of this is just a rough outline from the Department of Territory, of which some initial details have already been revealed.
"The railway strategy allows us to broaden our perspective and consider the structure, investments, rolling stock, and new rail lines that Catalonia needs between now and 2050. It's a roadmap for the future, going beyond the work already underway," explained Minister Paneque. The Government spokesperson also stated that "the objective is to plan the development of rail transport in the medium and long term and adapt it to current and future infrastructure challenges."
Some of the strategy's objectives will be "maximizing network capacity" and considering "railway as a vector for territorial rebalancing," milestones within which the possibility of reviving the orbital line project could be considered. This new line would connect Mataró and Vilanova i la Geltrú inland, linking existing sections. The project isn't new, but it has been shelved for years by various governments. It would connect Vilanova, Vilafranca del Penedès, Martorell, Terrassa, Sabadell, Granollers, and Mataró without passing through Barcelona. Regarding this orbital axis, Paneque explained that a study report on the project will be commissioned before the end of 2025. They also plan to revive the historic Eix Transversal Ferroviari project, a line that would connect Lleida, Manresa, Vic, and Girona, also without going through the Catalan capital. Among the possible measures the government includes in this strategy is the creation of three new high-speed rail (AVE) stations: Girona Airport, Reus Airport, and Vilafranca del Penedès. But they will also negotiate with the Ministry of Transport the transfer of inland services that are not yet under the control of the Generalitat (Catalan government), such as the Avant trains between Lleida, Tarragona, Barcelona, Girona, Figueres, and Tortosa. Furthermore, the strategy agreed upon by the Catalan government also addresses a problem currently facing the Catalan rail network: the aging of the infrastructure and trains, and the difficulties in renewing them. In this context, one of the government's options is to create a public company that would "hold rolling stock." This would give the Generalitat greater authority in managing and implementing public policies related to railway equipment and would facilitate the standardization of vehicles to allow for their replacement as they age or break down.
A horizon of plans
As "instruments" to implement this strategy in the coming years, the department led by Councillor Paneque wants to promote a new formulation of the Catalan Railway Law and insists that the following are on the table: the Catalan Railway Services Plan – which must define the configuration and mode of operation in the medium and long term of the railway services of Catalonia; the revision of the Catalan Transport Infrastructure Plan – which must update the programming of transport infrastructure; the strategic plan for the development of intermodal terminals in Catalonia; the annual updates of the Catalan Agenda for the Mediterranean Corridor; and the programming of the actions of the Commuter Rail Plan in the five-year period 2026-2030.