| Madrid–Extremadura high-speed rail line | |
|---|---|
 Construction works inMontijo | |
| Overview | |
| Termini | |
| Service | |
| Operator(s) | Renfe |
| History | |
| Planned opening | 2030 (whole) |
| Technical | |
| Operating speed |
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| Train protection system | ERTMS |
TheMadrid—Extremadura high-speed rail line is a rail line under construction in Spain, intended to linkMadrid andBadajoz.
As of July 2021[update], the Badajoz–Mérida stretch had begun electrification.[1]
In 2016 theEuropean Union'sEuropean Regional Development Fund, gave Spain €205.1m towards the €312.1m needed for the track betweenNavalmoral de la Mata andMérida.[2]
The tentative finishing date for thePlasencia–Navalmoral de la Mata stretch pushed forward to 2025.[3] TheOropesa–Madrid stretch is the least developed part of the project, only in the informative study phase as of 2021[update].[4][3] The local government ofTalavera de la Reina have lobbied for the undergrounding of the railway as it would pass through Talavera de la Reina.[5]
Once finished by 2030, the Badajoz–Madrid line is expected to provide high-speed rail services linking both cities in 2 hours 31 minutes.[4]
The infrastructure is built with multi-purposerailroad ties, set forIberian gauge but allowing for a future switch tostandard gauge.[6] It is single track from Badajoz to Mérida and double track from Mérida to Plasencia.[4]
The Badajoz–Plasencia new railway line entered in service on 19 July 2022 after its institutional inauguration in June 2022, but was not yet electrified and the speed was limited to 200 km/h (125 mph), planned to be increased to 250 km/h (155 mph) when the line will be electrified.[7][8] The first phase of the electrification is scheduled to be completed in September 2023, when a first test train will circulate between Plasencia andCáceres (the same will be done later on Cáceres–Badajoz, where the electrification work is also being finalized).[9]
The Oropesa segment of the track will be 68.6 km (42.6 mi) long.[4]
127 km (79 mi) long, it will consist of a passenger only double track segment between Madrid and Talavera de la Reina and mixed passenger-freight traffic from Talavera de la Reina to Oropesa.[4]
The extension to Portugal, theLisbon–Madrid high-speed rail line, forms part of theTrans-European high-speed rail network, which in turn is one of a number of theEuropean Union'sTrans-European transport networks (TEN-T). It was defined by the CouncilDirective 96/48/EC of 23 July 1996.[10] Although in 2012 the project was formally cancelled on the Portuguese side of the project as not being financially viable,[11] it was brought back in 2020 as the Portuguese government saw new opportunities.
The current plan is to open the line by sections on the "South International Corridor", between the Spanish border and Lisbon viaÉvora (and with another branch from Évora towards the port ofSines).As of March 2023, the line between Badajoz and Lisbon was planned to be opened in 2024, with a journey time between Lisbon and Badajoz of 1 hour 50 minutes.[12]The line is currently planned to fully open by 2030.
The border section Badajoz–Elvas is composed of :
Medium-term plans include a large Badajoz bypass and a new cross-border/on-the-border station in Caia which will serve both Badajoz and Elvas.
From Elvas to Évora, a 90 km (56 mi) section of new line is currently under construction, named "New line of Évora" (PortugueseNova Linha de Évora [pt]), which will allow operational speeds up to 250 km/h (155 mph).[14][15][16][17]As of March 2023, this section, designed for a maximum speed of 300 km/h (186 mph), was planned to be completed by the end of 2023.[12]This will be the first high-speed line section to be opened in Portugal (the high-speed sections opened until then were upgraded lines with lower speed).[12]
The line from Évora to Lisbon viaPoceirão [pt], with anew bridge over theTagus River (as in the original plan) is planned to be upgraded.[14][15][16] 100 km (62 mi) of upgraded railway is in service where Intercity trains run at 200 km/h (125 mph) on the upgraded single track.[citation needed]
A new double-tracked high-speed line for the section between Évora-Norte and Poceirão is planned, but given lower priority over other sections of the high speed railway network, with completion predicted not earlier than the mid-2030's. As an intermediate upgrade, planning is underway for the duplication of the current line betweenPoceirão [pt] andBombel [pt].
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