Spain to invest €660m in Madrid station upgrades

Spain’s minister of development, Mr Iñigo de la Serna, has announced an investment of €660.6m to increase the capacity of Madrid Puerta de Atocha station and alter the track layout at Charmatín station in preparation for the opening of the €332m standard-gauge tunnel linking the two stations.

Two new 420m-long island platforms with four standard-gauge tracks will be constructed beneath tracks 14 and 15 at Atocha station and Méndez Álvaro Street. This will allow standard-gauge high-speed trains to and from Charmatín to stop at Atocha, which will become the hub of the national high-speed network.

The project will also increase the capacity of the station, which was used by 22 million people last year, to 40 million. In addition, a new entrance hall will be constructed, and the existing concourse will be remodelled to improve pedestrian flow and access to the platforms.

At Charmatín, two of the 15 broad-gauge tracks will be converted to standard gauge, and four standard-gauge tracks will be laid to supplement the existing six standard-gauge tracks.

The work at Atocha will cost €423m while the track alterations at Charmartín will cost €237.6m. In addition, two extra tracks have been laid between Atocha and Torrejón de Velasco at a cost of €646.5m.

Construction of the new standard-gauge tunnel between Charmartín and Atocha has been completed and is currently being tested. This is the third cross-city line between the two Madrid stations, with the other two serving broad-gauge trains.

Source: railjournal.com