National report Spain – December 2013

Positive points for public transport in our country:

1. Last figures on Barcelona’s PT transport passengers show a slight increase in the last quarter of year. It seems that the decline of PT use has been stopped. The figures of Madrid are not so good and continue their decline.

2. On November Barcelona started with the second step of its new bus network, the so-called orthogonal network, following metro patters but with a not proper speed which is the issue that must be solved. With this second step the number of bus passengers transported in the new orthogonal scheme are the 30% of the all surface passengers. See the PTP comment in https://transportpublic.org/qui-som-i-que-fem/ptp-a-la-premsa/1304-la-nova-xarxa-te-sentit-si-es-completa

3. Associations in favour of public transport in the north and south of the Pyrenees were met in Perpignan the 15^th January, the day of the opening of the direct and quick trans service between Barcelona and France, and issued a press release in which an improve of the cross trains through the French-Spanish border were claimed, since from this day only 5 trains per day pass through the border (before of the opening of the direct service there were 4 daily services). An improve of the train supply has been announced by summer. See press release in https://transportpublic.org/component/content/article/56-general/1313-service-ferroviaire-encore-insuffisante-dans-la-traverse-des-pyrenees

4. The Spanish Minister of Fomento (Public Works, unfortunately not Transportation ministry ¡) has announced that in 2014 private high speed train companies will compete with Renfe trains. See press new http://www.expansion.com/2013/12/03/empresas/transporte/1386072261.html?a=b78ac94ef76671f7a77fa52868d5a140&t=1386144042?cid=FCOPY33701

5. The Spanish Minister of Fomento (Public Works) announced her support to a PTP initiative for connecting Tarragona with the high speed train network. The link should be made in the town of the Arboç, 20 km to the north of Tarragona, in which the Iberic and the UIC lines run in parallel. In this place trains with Iberic gauge would be allowed to enter the UIC network and run at a high sped until Barcelona. This would mean a saving time, from the current time of travel of 1h10′ to 50′. The other important city in the area, Reus, would be also benefit from such approach. See the proposed scheme in https://transportpublic.org/component/content/article/56-general/1308-ana-pastor-dona-via-lliure-a-la-connexio-de-reus-i-tarragona-a-la-xarxa-dalta-velocitat

Negative points for public transport in our country

1. The cuts in the Madrid’s budget metro, due the crisis, has led the service to its lower level of service. According with unofficial data the 19% of Madrid’s metro trains are late. And the frequencies are not met in 7% of cases in the rush hour.

2. The tram service in Vélez-Málaga, in the coast of Andalusia, has been cancelled and trams are been sold and sent to another country. A new example of the bad management in the Spanish management of infrastructures. The tram of Jaén, one of the eight Andalusian province capitals, has the risk to suffer the same fate since two years after the end of the works is not still running due to he lack of the new Mayor’s commitment.