Transport in Spain is characterised by a network of roads, railways, trams, air routes, and ports. Its geographic location makes it an important link between Europe, Africa, and the Americas. Major forms of transit generally radiate from the capital, Madrid, located in the centre of the country, to link with the capitals of the autonomous communities.
Rail transport in Spain operates on four rail gauges and services are operated by a variety of private and public operators. The total route length in 2012 was 16,026 km.
Alta Velocidad Española (AVE) is a high-speed rail service operated by Renfe, the Spanish State railway company.
The Estación de Madrid-Chamartín Clara Campoamor or Madrid Chamartín is the second major railway station in Madrid, Spain. Located on the northern side of the city, it was built between 1970 and 1975, but more work was carried on into the early 1980s. It then superseded Atocha station, which is located just south of the city centre. However, as the AVE network expanded with a hub at Atocha, Chamartin again became Madrid's second station by passenger volume.
High-speed railways in Spain are in operation since 1992 when the first line was opened connecting the cities of Madrid, Córdoba and Seville. Unlike the rest of the Iberian broad gauge network, the Spanish High-speed network mainly uses standard gauge. This permits direct connections to outside Spain through the link to the French network at the Perthus Tunnel. High-speed trains run on a network of high-speed rail track owned and managed by ADIF, where the dominant service is AVE while other high speed services such as Avant, Alvia, Avlo, Euromed, Ouigo España and Iryo, as well as mid-speed (Altaria) services also operate.
Barcelona Sants is the main railway station in Barcelona, owned by Adif, the railway infrastructure agency of Spain. It has become the most important transport hub of the city - being the centre of Rodalies de Catalunya including Barcelona suburban railway services and regional services, as well as the main inter-city station for national and international destinations. The station is named after Sants, the neighbourhood of Barcelona in which it is located. New parts of the station have recently been remodeled to accommodate the Spanish high-speed train AVE in the city, which started serving the city on 20 February 2008. There is also an adjacent international bus station bearing the same name, and a link to the Sants Estació metro station that serves the railway station.
The Madrid–Barcelona high-speed rail line is a 621-kilometre (385.9 mi) standard gauge railway line inaugurated on 20 February 2008. Designed for speeds of 350 km/h (217.5 mph) and compatibility with neighbouring countries' rail systems, it connects the cities of Madrid and Barcelona in 2 hours 30 minutes. In Barcelona the line is connected with the Perpignan–Barcelona high-speed rail line leading into France which connects it to the European high speed network.
The Madrid–Málaga high-speed rail line is a standard gauge High-speed rail line of 512 km (318 mi) in length that links the city of Madrid with the city of Málaga in Spain. The line was inaugurated on 24 December 2007. At the time the service opened, Renfe Operadora was running 22 trains daily between Madrid and Málaga.
ADIF is a Spanish state-owned railway infrastructure manager. This state owned company reports to the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility. ADIF is charged with the management of most of Spain's railway infrastructure, that is the track, signaling and stations. It was formed in 2005 in response to European Union requirements to separate the natural monopoly of infrastructure management from the competitive operations of running train services. It is the legal successor of Renfe, Feve, and GIF.
The Madrid–Levante high-speed network is a network of high-speed rail lines that connects Madrid with the Mediterranean coast of the Levante Region, specifically with Castilla-La Mancha, the Valencian Community and the Murcia Region autonomous communities.
Badajoz railway station is the central railway station of Badajoz, Spain. Commonly referred locally as the RENFE station, the station is part of Adif and high-speed rail systems: it is located at the western part of the Southwest–Portuguese high speed line.
The Madrid–Galicia high-speed rail line is a high-speed railway line in Spain that links the city of Madrid with the region of Galicia via the cities of Olmedo, Zamora, Ourense and Santiago de Compostela. The line also connects the Atlantic Axis high-speed rail line to the rest of the Spanish AVE high-speed network. The Madrid–Galicia high-speed rail line is constructed as double electrified line and is designed for trains running at speeds up to 350 kilometres per hour (220 mph).
Málaga María Zambrano railway station is the principal railway station in the city Málaga in Andalusia, Spain on the Córdoba-Málaga high-speed rail line. It is served by high-speed trains to Madrid, Barcelona as well as the Cercanías Málaga and Málaga Metro systems.
Huesca railway station serves the city of Huesca in the province of the same name, Aragon, Spain. The station is a terminus with four platforms faces and six tracks. It was opened in 2001, replacing an earlier station that had opened in 1864 along with the Zaragoza to Huesca railway. The old station was demolished not long after the opening of the new one.
Murcia del Carmen railway station is the main railway station in the Spanish city of Murcia.
Antequera-Santa Ana railway station is a railway station at a railway junction near the Spanish town of Antequera, Málaga in Andalusia. It is located 17 kilometres (11 mi) from the town centre. It was created principally to serve passengers on the developing AVE high-speed rail system. However, the station has access to Iberian gauge lines for conventional services.
Córdoba railway station, also known as Córdoba Central is the main railway station of the Spanish city of Córdoba, Andalusia. It was opened in 1994 replacing an older station.
Ciudad Real railway station is the main railway station of the Spanish city of Ciudad Real, Castilla–La Mancha. Located on the AVE high-speed rail line from Madrid Atocha to Seville-Santa Justa and Málaga María Zambrano, travel to Madrid can be achieved in under an hour.
Cartagena railway station is the main railway station in the Spanish city of Cartagena in the Region of Murcia. It is the terminus of the Chinchilla–Cartagena railway, and the current station building opened in 1903.
Almería railway station is the main railway station of the Spanish city of Almería, Andalusia.
