Rail transport in Spain

Spain

High-speed AVE train, Madrid-Barcelona line.
Operation
National railway Renfe Operadora
Infrastructure company Adif
Major operators RENFE, FEVE, EuskoTren, FGC, FGV
System length
Total 16,026 km (9,958 mi)
Electrified 10,182 km (6,327 mi)
Track gauge
Broad gauge
1,668 mm (5 ft 5 21⁄32 in)		 11,829 km (7,350 mi)
Standard gauge
1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in)		 998 km (620 mi)
Metre gauge
1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in)		 1,926 km (1,197 mi)
Narrow gauge
914 mm (3 ft)		 28 km (17 mi)
Electrification
3000 V DC Main network
25 kV AC High-speed lines, recent electrification
Features
Longest tunnel Sierra de Guadarrama, 28.4 km (17.6 mi)
Map

Rail transport in Spain operates on four rail gauges and services are operated by a variety of private and public operators. The total route length in 2012 was 16,026 km (10,182 km electrified).[1]

Most railways are operated by Renfe Operadora; metre and narrow-gauge lines are operated by FEVE and other carriers in individual autonomous communities. It is proposed and planned to build or convert more lines to standard gauge,[2] including some dual gauging of broad-gauge lines, especially where these lines link to France, including platforms to be heightened.

Spain is a member of the International Union of Railways (UIC). The UIC Country Code for Spain is 71.

History

The first railway line in the Iberian Peninsula was built in 1848 between Barcelona and Mataró.[3] In 1851 was opened the Madrid-Aranjuez line. In 1852 the first narrow gauge line was built; in 1863 a line reached the Portuguese border. By 1864 the Madrid-Irun line had been opened, and the French border reached.[3]

In 1900 the first line to be electrified was the La Poveda-Madrid.[4]

In 1941 RENFE was created.[3]

The last steam locomotive was withdrawn in 1975, in 1986 the maximum speed on the railways was raised to 160 km/h, and in 1992 the Madrid-Seville high-speed line opened,[3] beginning the process of building a nationwide high-speed network.

The current plans of the Spanish government plans to link all the provincial capitals with high-speed rail, with a total estimated length of over 9000 km[5] of high-speed railways for 2020.

Operators

Metro/light rail systems

Bilbao metro.

Narrow gauge

In Spain there is an extensive 1,250 km (780 mi) system of metre gauge railways

High-speed standard gauge

Rail links with adjacent countries

Andorra has no rail system.

Subsidies

In 2004, the Spanish government adopted a new strategic plan for transportation through 2020 called the PEIT (Strategic Plan for Infrastructures and Transport). This detailed rail subsidies of around €9.3 billion annually on average from 2005-2020. In 2010, it rolled out a two-year plan to invest an extra €11 billion each year for two years, as a part of a financial stimulus in response to the global downturn.[6] In 2015, the federal budget for the railways was €5.1 billion.[7]

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rail transport in Spain.

References

  1. ↑ CIA - The World Factbook - Spain
  2. ↑ Verkehrsrundschau, 2007-04-30
  3. 1 2 3 4 Significant events in the history of Spanish infrastructures and railways www.fomento.es. See also www.biada.com
  4. ↑ Ferrotransmadrid
  5. ↑ Descubre la Alta Velocidad
  6. ↑ "Global Competitiveness in the Rail and Transit Industry p. 20-21" (PDF).
  7. ↑ "Spanish railways battle profit loss with more investment". 17 September 2015. Retrieved 10 March 2016.

http://www.gosanangelo.com/news/2012/feb/03/thomas-sowell-getting-nowhere-but-very-fast-in/?preventMobileRedirect=1 http://jewishworldreview.com/cols/sowell013112.php3

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