Rail transport in Catalonia

Last updated
  Catalonia
Estacio de Valldoreix 02 2018.jpg
An FGC 113 series at Valldoreix station
Operation
National railway FGC
Infrastructure company Ifercat and Adif
Major operators FGC, Renfe, Ouigo and Iryo
Statistics
Ridership 235.7 million (Generalitat de Catalunya, 2019) [1]
Freight6.8 million tons per year (Generalitat de Catalunya, 2019) [1]
System length
TotalTotal 1,865 km (1,159 mi), FGC 297 km (185 mi), [1] Renfe 1,568 km (974 mi) [2]
Features
No. stations 316 (110 served by FGC and 206 served by Renfe) [1]
Map
Rodalies barcelona 2013.svg
Suburban rail system of Barcelona as of 2023

Rail transport in Catalonia operates on three rail gauges and services are operated by a variety of public operators: [3]

Contents

Transport authorities

Catalan transport authorities map. ATM Catalunya.svg
Catalan transport authorities map.

Transport authorities are inter-administrative voluntary corporations responsible for coordinating the public transportation system. There are currently four transport authorities in Catalonia:

Rodalies de Barcelona

New Cornella station entrance Cornella de Llobregat Bridge.JPG
New Cornellà station entrance
112 FGC train stock FGC112.jpg
112 FGC train stock

Rodalies Barcelona Rodalies de Catalunya.svg FGC.svg is the principal element of Barcelona metropolitan area transport and in some municipalities of Girona and Tarragona.

There are 15 lines (R1-R2-R3-R4-R7-R10-S1-S2-S5-S55-S1-S8-S33-R5-R6) operated by:

Rodalies de Girona

Renfe Operadora RG1 line:

Rodalies de Lleida

FGC Lleida-La Pobla line:

Rodalies de Tarragona

Renfe Operadora Tarragona's lines:

The Generalitat de Catalunya is building a tramway system connecting several cities of the Camp de Tarragona, those being Reus, Tarragona, Vila-seca, Cambrils and Salou. This service, the Tramvia del Camp de Tarragona (also called TramCamp) will comprise around 46km of tracks and 47 stations, with a first part of 14km (between Cambrils, Salou and Vila-seca) being finished in 2026 and the Vila-seca - Tarragona and Vila-seca - Reus sections finishing in no longer than 10 years from the initial announcement in 2023. The whole system will be built in Standard-gauge railway and operated by Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya.

Mitjana distància and Regional Exprés

R1 train between Calella and Sant Pol de Mar Clp 20030521 447 Sant Pol de Mar.jpg
R1 train between Calella and Sant Pol de Mar
Portbou railway station EstacioPortbou.jpg
Portbou railway station

Mitjana distància or Regional Exprés: Those lines cover the four Catalan provinces. Lines are operated by:

Llarga distància

Estrella train RN319-3362.JPG
Estrella train
Talgo 350 - AVE Talgo 350.jpg
Talgo 350 - AVE
Trenhotel Salvador Dali EN11273MilanoCLE.jpg
Trenhotel Salvador Dalí
Euromed to Valencia Nord station Em03 1382 VLC nrd.jpg
Euromed to València Nord station
Alaris to Silla (Valencia). AL04490Silla.jpg
Alaris to Silla (València).
Arco Garcia Lorca to Alzira (Valencia). 697Alzira.jpg
Arco García Lorca to Alzira (València).

Llarga distància or Larga distancia (in Catalan or Castilian) Renfe Larga distancia.svg are Renfe lines that used other Renfe lines, mitjana distància or Rodalies, and connect Catalonia with other Spanish towns or European cities. Some of them are high speed lines. [7]

Alta Velocidad Española

High speed lines are operated by Renfe in a commercial branch called Alta Velocidad Española (AVE). Those lines run on new standard gauge railways.

102-014 stock to Montblanc station RN102014MonJPVL.JPG
102-014 stock to Montblanc station

Railway gauge

Canviador d'ample.jpg

Most of Catalan's railway gauge is broad gauge, as in other parts of Spain, and new railways are built in standard gauge to be able to connect with European railways; therefore, some stations exist where trains can change gauges. Currently, there are only two stations in Catalonia with that capability:

Metropolitan railways

Barcelona metro map Barcelona Metro Map.svg
Barcelona metro map

There are 11 metropolitan lines in Barcelona (L1-L2-L3-L4-L5-L6-L7-L8-L9-L10-L11) operated by:

Metro de Barcelona
NameColorTerminalTerminalOpenedFirst
service
OperatorKmStationsTime
(m)
Gauge
(mm)
L1 RedHospital de BellvitgeFondo19261926 Logometrobcn.svg TMB 20'730351674
L2 PurpleParal·lelBadalona Pompeu Fabra19951959 Logometrobcn.svg TMB 13'51724 1435
L3 GreenZona UniversitàriaTrinitat Nova19241924 Logometrobcn.svg TMB 18'526361435
L4 YellowTrinitat NovaLa Pau19731926 Logometrobcn.svg TMB 16'722361435
L5 BlueCornellà CentreVall d'Hebron19591959 Logometrobcn.svg TMB 16'623371435
L6 Navy bluePlaça CatalunyaReina Elisenda192918634 FGC logo (2019).svg FGC 5'29141435
L7 BrownPlaça CatalunyaAvinguda Tibidabo195418634 FGC logo (2019).svg FGC 4'637101435
L8 PinkPlaça EspanyaMolí Nou-C.C.20001912 FGC logo (2019).svg FGC 1211211000
L9 OrangeTerminal SudCan Zam2009-14- Logometrobcn.svg TMB 47'839 (51)-1435
L10 Light blueGorgPolígon Pratenc2009-14- Logometrobcn.svg TMB -32-1435
L11 Light greenTrinitat NovaCan Cuiàs20032003 Logometrobcn.svg TMB 2'1561435

Territory

Nowadays there are 32 comarcas (group of municipalities) with some kind of rail service; 14 of those have Rodalies Barcelona and/or FGC services. There are comarcas with medium- or long-distance stations and nine comarcas without rail service.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya</span> Railway company in Catalonia, Spain

Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya, or FGC, is a railway company which operates several unconnected lines in Catalonia, Spain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">AVE</span> High-speed rail service in Spain

Alta Velocidad Española (AVE) is a high-speed rail service operated by Renfe, the Spanish State railway company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barcelona Metro</span> Rapid transit system in Barcelona, Spain

The Barcelona Metro is a network of rapid transit electrified railway lines that run mostly underground in central Barcelona and into the city's suburbs. It is part of the larger public transport system of Barcelona, the capital of Catalonia, Spain, with unified fares under the Autoritat del Transport Metropolità (ATM) scheme. As of 2014, the network is operated by two separate companies: Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona (TMB) and Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya (FGC). It is made up of 12 lines, combining the lines owned by the two companies. Two lines, L9 and L10, are being built at present, with both lines having different sections of each opened between 2009 and 2018. They are due to be fully completed in 2026. Three lines on the network have opened as automatic train operation/driverless vehicle systems since 2009: Line 11 being converted to driverless first, and then Lines 9 and 10, opening up driverless.

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.

Line 8, coloured pink and operated by FGC, is part of the Barcelona Metro network, and therefore of the larger ATM fare-integrated transport system. It joins Plaça Espanya, in the Sants-Montjuïc district of Barcelona with metropolitan area municipalities of L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Cornellà de Llobregat and Sant Boi de Llobregat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Plaça d'Espanya station</span> Metro station in Barcelona, Spain

Plaça d'Espanya, also simply known as Espanya, is an interchange complex underneath Plaça d'Espanya, in the Barcelona district of Sants-Montjuïc, in Catalonia, Spain. It comprises the Barcelona terminus of the Llobregat–Anoia Line and a Barcelona Metro station complex served by lines 1 (L1) and 3 (L3). On the L1, the station is between Hostafrancs and Rocafort, and on the L3 it is between Poble Sec and Tarragona. The Llobregat–Anoia Line station is served by Barcelona Metro line 8 (L8), Baix Llobregat Metro lines S33, S4 and S8, and commuter rail lines R5, R6, R50 and R60. The services on the Llobregat–Anoia Line are operated by Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya (FGC), whilst the L1 and L3 are operated by Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona (TMB).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Plaça de Catalunya station</span> Barcelona Metro station

Plaça de Catalunya station, also known as Barcelona-Plaça Catalunya, Plaça Catalunya or simply Catalunya is a major station complex in Barcelona located under Plaça de Catalunya, the city's central square and a large transport hub. Many Rodalies de Catalunya, Barcelona Metro and Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya lines go through it and many bus routes link it with all of the districts of the city and most of the municipalities in its metropolitan area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barcelona Sants railway station</span> Railway station in Spain

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.

Euromed is a high-speed rail service operated by Renfe along the Spanish Mediterranean coast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">R1–RG1 (Rodalies de Catalunya)</span> Part of Barcelonas commuter rail service

The R1 is a line of Rodalies de Catalunya's Barcelona commuter rail service, operated by Renfe Operadora. It runs northwards from the Barcelona area to the southern limits of the province of Girona, passing through the coastal Maresme region. Since 2014, some services have been extended further north towards Portbou, near the French border. These services are designated RG1 and are considered part of the Girona commuter rail service. The line had an annual ridership of 28 million in 2016, achieving an average weekday ridership of 102,214 according to 2008 data.

Alvia is a high-speed train service in Spain offered by Renfe Operadora on long-distance routes with a top speed of 250 km/h (160 mph). The trains have the ability to use both Iberian gauge and standard gauge, which allows them to travel on the recently constructed high-speed lines for part of the journey before switching to the "classic" Iberian gauge network to complete it. Trains that run exclusively on high-speed tracks are branded AVE or Avant.

Public transport in Barcelona is operated by several companies, most of which are part of the Autoritat del Transport Metropolità, a transport authority managing services in the Barcelonès and the rest of the metropolitan area of Barcelona. This article is a summary with transport facilities and services strictly within the municipality of Barcelona, and contains links to more specific articles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rodalies de Catalunya</span> Commuter and regional rail system in Catalonia, Spain

Rodalies de Catalunya is the main commuter and regional rail system in the Spanish autonomous community of Catalonia. It is administered by the Government of Catalonia and operated by the national rail operator Renfe Operadora. The system consists of 17 service lines chiefly centred in the Barcelona area, serving a total of 203 stations throughout Catalonia, with an average number of 1,000 trains running on it every day. In 2016, it had an annual ridership of 117 million.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tren Estrella</span>

El tren Estrella was a conventional overnight railway service provided in Spain by the national rail network operator RENFE until April 2015. Services left most major Spanish cities in the evening and usually arrived at their destination the following morning.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barcelona–Cerbère railway</span>

The Barcelona–Cerbère railway is a 168-kilometre (104.39 mi) railway line linking Barcelona in Catalonia, Spain to Cerbère in France. It is served by the Rodalies de Catalunya commuter network, Renfe regional, MD, AVE, Avlo and Avant train services, and TGV trains. The line stars at Barcelona Sants railway station, and passes through the Catalan regional cities of Girona and Figueres before reaching the French border, and then Cerbère, just across the border. It is an important commuter and High Speed line, connecting Paris, Montpellier and Perpinyà to Spain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">R11 (Rodalies de Catalunya)</span> Rail service

The R11 is a line of Rodalies de Catalunya's regional rail service, operated by Renfe Operadora. It runs northwards from the Barcelona area to the French border town of Cerbère, passing through the Vallès Oriental, Selva, Gironès and Alt Empordà regions. With a total line length of 172 kilometres (107 mi), it extends notably beyond the limits of the Barcelona metropolitan area, reaching the Pyrenees mountains.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">R16 (Rodalies de Catalunya)</span>

The R16 is a line of Rodalies de Catalunya's regional rail service, operated by Renfe Operadora. It runs southwards from the Barcelona area to the town of Tortosa, passing through the Vallès Occidental, Baix Llobregat, Garraf, Baix Penedès, Camp de Tarragona, Baix Ebre and Montsià regions. With a total line length of 172 kilometres (107 mi), it extends notably beyond the limits of the Barcelona metropolitan area, along the Mediterranean coast.

The R17 is a line of Rodalies de Catalunya's regional rail service, operated by Renfe Operadora. It runs southwards from the Barcelona area to Port Aventura, near the seaside resort of Salou, passing through the Vallès Occidental, Baix Llobregat, Garraf, Baix Penedès, Camp de Tarragona, Baix Ebre and Montsià regions. R17 trains run primarily on the Valencia−Sant Vicenç de Calders and Madrid–Barcelona railway, using Port Aventura as their southernmost terminus, and Barcelona Estació de França as its northern one. They use the Aragó Tunnel in Barcelona, where they share tracks with Rodalies de Catalunya's Barcelona suburban lines R2, R2 Nord and R2 Sud and regional rail lines R11, R13, R14, R15 and R16, calling at Sants and Passeig de Gràcia stations, while they continue to share tracks with Barcelona commuter rail service R2 Sud as far as Sant Vicenç de Calders, and with the Tarragona commuter rail service RT2 from Sant Vicenç de Calders to Port Aventura.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 https://www.idescat.cat/indicadors/?id=aec&n=15580&tema=trans&lang=es%7Ctitle=Ferrocarril. Transport de viatgers i mercaderies|publisher=Institut d'Estadística de Catalunya|date=12 May 2021|access-date=29 April 2023
  2. https://maldita.es/malditodato/20220421/mas-15500-km-vias-tren-red-ferroviaria-espana/%7Ctitle=Más de 15.500 kilómetros de vías de tren: así ha evolucionado la red ferroviaria|date=21 April 2022|access-date=29 April 2023
  3. Trenscat, Catalan trains web (in Catalan)
  4. Rodalies map
  5. Xarxa FGC Archived 2008-08-22 at the Wayback Machine
  6. Mitjana Distància Renfe map
  7. Llarga distància Renfe (in Spanish)