After years of continuous complaints from Extremadura and many delays, the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility has activated an alternative plan to unblock the Madrid-Extremadura High-Speed Line (LAV). The Official State Gazette (BOE) will publish an informational study in the coming days regarding a temporary link in Bargas (Toledo). This infrastructure will connect the Seville high-speed line with the conventional rail network heading toward Extremadura.
The document will be subject to public review for a period of 30 business days. With this solution, rail services originating in Madrid will run on the high-speed line to the municipality of Pantoja. At that point, trains will access the conventional track via a gauge changer, which will allow for time savings on the routes ahead of schedule.
Engineers have designed two alternatives for this electrified double-track link . Both options are capable of handling passenger trains traveling at 350 km/h and include parking areas. Ultimately, the Ministry’s analysis has determined that the first alternative better meets the technical requirements.
New study for the final route to Extremadura
At the same time, the administration will finalize a contract in a few weeks to define the train’s permanent route through Toledo. The City Council, the Provincial Council, and the Regional Government of Castile-La Mancha proposed alternative routes during the public comment period.
These local requests represent a substantial modification to the original project. For this reason, the Government will draft a new study with the corresponding heritage and environmental analyses to assess the technical feasibility of the requested options.
Status of the sections to Oropesa
The high-speed project between the capital and Oropesa has been divided into four sections due to its length. The sections in Talavera de la Reina and Oropesa itself have not undergone any modifications, and the Ministry has moved them to the environmental assessment phase.
The section corresponding to Torrijos began this same environmental review process in December of last year. The high urban and historical complexity of the route through the city of Toledo has stalled progress on the first section, which is why the authorities have resorted to the current temporary detour.