The Department of Territory, Housing, and Ecological Transition has initiated the planning phase for a major new railway axis across Catalonia. Through the public agency Infraestructures Ferroviàries de Catalunya (Ifercat), the government has launched a study for the first phase of the Transversal Railway Axis connecting Lleida, Igualada, and the northern access to Barcelona-Sagrera station.
The tender for this study, valued at €1.1 million plus VAT, was officially launched this week and will take 28 months to complete. According to Ifercat, the project aims to create a strategic rail corridor that improves capacity, efficiency, and balance across the regional network.
The Government is taking steps to reactivate the Transversal Railway Axis, a strategic infrastructure to reinforce and guarantee the capacity, efficiency, and balance of the Catalan railway network.
New AVE Station Planned in Vallès
A key component of the plan is the construction of a high-speed rail station in the Vallès region. The station would allow transfers between AVE services, Rodalies commuter trains, and Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya (FGC) lines. However, the exact municipality for the station has not yet been specified in the tender documents.
The proposed route must run “sensiblement paralelo” (significantly parallel) to the existing R8 Rodalies line between Rubí tunnel and Mollet-Sant Fost, as stated in the contract specifications managed by Ifercat.
Madrid-Barcelona AVE Trains to Enter via Sagrera
The study also includes plans for a new branch line between Martorell and Mollet, enabling AVE trains from Madrid to enter Barcelona through the future La Sagrera station instead of the current terminus at Sants. This aligns with broader efforts by Spain’s Ministry of Transport to reduce travel time between the two cities to under two hours.
Under the proposal, high-speed trains would stop at a minimum of one station in each comarca (county) along the route, enhancing regional connectivity.
The project is seen as critical amid ongoing upgrades to the Mediterranean Corridor and modernisation of the Ebro Corridor (Tarragona-Lleida-Zaragoza), both of which will increase freight and passenger traffic through Catalonia.
Primary sources: Exa. Reported by metropoliabierta.elespanol.com, lavanguardia.com, Pau Lizana Manuel, expansion.com, Jordi Martín, europapress.es, beteve.cat, eleconomista.es, Metrópoli Abierta - Urban Life.
