The commuter rail network is one step closer to reaching the Infanta Sofía University Hospital. Last July, the Ministry of Transportation put out a bid for the contract to develop the preliminary feasibility study for the extension of Line C-4a to a new commuter rail station next to the hospital, with a bid budget of 877,855 euros.
This study will help define the technical measures required to extend Line C-4a from the Alcobendas/San Sebastián de los Reyes station (its current terminus) to the Infanta Sofía Hospital.
Although this is a key step toward the future extension of the network, it will be a long time before the new station opens: the contract to conduct the study alone has an initial execution period of two years, from the drafting of the study and its processing through to obtaining the Environmental Impact Statement and Final Approval.
A new commuter rail section that would serve 9,500 passengers daily
Prior to the bidding process for the contract to conduct the preliminary study, the Ministry of Transportation and Sustainable Mobility had already prepared a feasibility study that concluded that extending the commuter rail network to the Infanta Sofía Hospital is“technically and socioeconomically feasible.”
The feasibility study also estimated that the project would require an investment of approximately 137 million euros, and that around 9,500 passengers would use the new rail section daily. Furthermore, it is projected that the new connection will allow commuter rail users to save an average of 10 minutes on their commutes compared to currently available modes of transportation.
The commuter rail station planned near the Infanta Sofía Hospital would be just one of several stations to be added to the C-4 line in the medium to long term, according to the Ministry of Transportation’s plans.
On July 8, the Ministry announced the completion of construction on the platforms and passenger terminal at the future Parla Norte station, while in August , work began on laying the track that will extend Line C-4b from Colmenar Viejo to the Soto Sur commuter rail station in Soto del Real. Also this year, in April, Adif put out a bid for the construction of another commuter station on the C-4b line, north of Tres Cantos.