Abdalajís Tunnel

The Abdalajís Tunnel is a 8,970-metre (29,430 ft) tunnel that forms part of the Córdoba-Málaga high-speed rail line in the Cordillera Penibética. The Abdalajís Tunnel System is the second-longest operational railway tunnel (after the Guadarrama Tunnel) in Spain. This tunnel, along with various other viaducts and tunnels along the line, enables a travel time from Madrid to Málaga of 2 hours and 20 minutes.[1]

Description

The tunnel has proved controversial because of its environmental impact, which caused widespread protests. News footage available on YouTube shows serious leaks that existed during the construction, causing disruptions to the water supplies in the area for several days.[2] The journal Environmental Geology published an article about the problems faced during the construction of the tunnel.[3]

Even though the AVE Class 102 is not speed-restricted in tunnels and furthermore the Abdalajís Tunnel's curvature radius of 6900m can theoretically support trains without tilting technology travelling at speeds of up to 392 km/h,[4] trains nonetheless slow down from 300 km/h to 160 km/h before entering the Abdalajís and Gobantes Tunnels. However, once Málaga-bound trains have passed through these two tunnels, they speed up to 300 km/h again for the Espinazo and Jévar viaducts and the shorter Álora, El Espartal, Tevilla, Gibralmora, and Cártama tunnels.

References

  1. ↑ http://ave-renfe.edreams.es/ave-malaga/el-ave-madrid-malaga-aun-mas-veloz/
  2. ↑ Links to YouTube
  3. ↑ Gisbert, J.; Vallejos, A.; González. A.; and Pulido-Bosch, A. "Environmental and hydrogeological problems in karstic terrains crossed by tunnels: a case study". Environmental Geology (Springerlink) 58 (2): 347–357. Retrieved July 1, 2011.
  4. ↑ "Línea Córdoba - Málaga: Tunel de Abdalajis". Adif website. Archived from the original on 1 July 2011. Retrieved July 1, 2011.

Coordinates: 36°56′20″N 4°43′49″W / 36.9389°N 4.7303°W / 36.9389; -4.7303

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