Adif - Abrimos caminos

In parallel to the line's construction, the stations that provide service to railway users are being adapted, while new ones are being built. 

Madrid Puerta de Atocha is the main high-speed railway station in Spain in terms of both passengers and traffic. High-speed trains leave this station bound for Barcelona, Valencia, Seville and Malaga. The infrastructure is key to the development of high-speed railways in Spain, since together with the Atocha – Chamartín tunnel it will enable the connection of all the lines in the capital city.

The first expansion phase, involving the separation of the departure and arrival areas, was completed on 19 December, 2010. The work is designed to increase the station's capacity, which will go from the current 16 million passengers a year to over 35 million by 2025.

 This two-floor building has a lobby on the ground floor, with spaces reserved for sale, information and customer service points, four commercial premises, cafeteria-restaurant and toilets, among other facilities.

The waiting room on the first floor has escalators and lifts leading directly to the platforms.

At the other side of the main building there is a second one with a rectangular ground plan and fully glazed façade. It has a comfortable waiting area with display monitors and other services.

The platforms are accessed from the waiting areas via ramps, lifts and escalators, thus meeting the current requirements for people with reduced mobility.

The control room, offices, meeting room and archive are located on the first floor of the main building of Guadalajara-Yebes. 10.5 million euros have been invested in this station, which has four international gauge tracks and three platforms.

 Remodelling and expansion of the old station.

The original Calatayud station has been thoroughly renovated in order to adapt it to the new operation requirements demanded by high-speed railways.

The passenger building has been completely renovated and expanded with a lobby joining part of the first platform, which used to be covered by a glass roof.

The Calatayud station has a travel centre that provides sale, information and customer services, as well as a cafeteria-restaurant and a car park with capacity for 170 vehicles.

 Located on the site of the old Delicias station, its opening meant the closing of the Zaragoza-Portillo station which until then had absorbed all of the city's railway traffic.

As the developer of this new station, Adif received the 6th Dedalo Minosse Special Award (2005/2006), one of the leading international architecture prizes.

The architects Carlos Ferrater, José María Valero and Félix Arran designed the Zaragoza-Delicias railway complex, which is intended to drive the city's urban transformation.

The station's roof is one of the highlights of the new line, a spectacular metal structure consisting of nine arches bearing the weight of a large surface folded into triangular shapes and numerous skylights that let in natural light, creating a suggestive setting in the large open space of the platform area.

The rectangular ground plant includes five international and five Iberian gauge tracks. Five large white concrete cubes, combined with red areas, provide volume to the east façade.

The terminal has two independent lobbies, one for departures and the other for passenger arrivals. Four automatic doors provide access to the inside of the departure lobby.

There is a glazed commercial area and waiting rooms. Once the passengers go through the control points leading to the platforms, they access the train through mechanical ramps and lifts.

A cross passage has also been built to link the various platforms, which distributes the flow of passengers from the car parks to the platforms and the bus station, located next to the train station, and with capacity for 40 vehicles.

 The Lleida station, with three international and three Iberian gauge tracks, has been renovated and expanded in order to adapt it to the new high-speed requirements.

The most visible work carried out is the installation of a steel, aluminium and methacrylate roof consisting of three waves above platforms I and 4 along the 200 metres of the passenger building.

The adaptation work involved the construction of a new lobby on the eastern side of the station, in order to adapt the building to the urban setting and the underpass giving access to the tracks.

The lobby is linked to the original building, where the travel centre is located. Glass and aluminium were used in its design. The work was completed with the restoration of the side and platform façades, and the installation of two lifts and four automatic ramps.

The building was designed to guarantee functionality, accessibility and efficiency for customers. Thus, all vertical and horizontal connections are aimed at optimizing passenger traffic, offering simple and dynamic routes in order to facilitate connectivity between each area.

The station will offer many benefits: passengers will enjoy greater mobility for their business or leisure journeys, new prospects will open for industry and businesses, and the tourist sector and related services will be boosted.

Its area of influence covers the Baix Ebre region to the Garraf, and to the west to the border with the province of Lleida, which will represent a population of more than 400,000 people, in addition to the visitors accessing the area thanks to the railway infrastructures and the connectivity with other collective means of transport.

Surface area, tracks and services: Built on 54,106.74 m2, it houses a travel centre, passenger service areas, commercial premises, left-luggage offices, a car park for 633 vehicles and complementary services.

It has 8 international gauge tracks for high-speed trains -4 central and 4 siding tracks- and two 400-metre long and 10-metre wide platforms. The trains are accessed through an 88-metre long elevated, covered walkway, provided with mechanical ramps and lifts. Both the ramps and the platforms are roofed.

It guarantees accessibility for people with reduced mobility and other disabilities: The car park is connected directly with the lobby, lifts and ramps giving access to the platform areas, thus eliminating any type of architectural barrier. 

First phase

Involves the construction of the new track 14 and a 4-floor car park on the side of the sea, with a surface area of 33,128 m2 and capacity for 1,074 vehicles. Work will also be carried out on tracks 11, 12 and 13, and also for relocating the services affected by construction.

The budget amounts to 29,309,414 euros, with an execution period of 18 months.

The most noteworthy aspect of this first phase is the dismantling and removal of the slabs located on the side of the station facing the sea (next to Parque de la España Industrial), which is essential for completing the construction work.

This highly complex technical work will be carried out by personnel specializing in the dismantling of large structures and experienced in large-scale urban work, such as the demolition of the Edificio Windsor building in Madrid.

Second phase

Includes the execution of the station's infrastructure, track and platform construction work, from platforms 0 to 5, and from tracks 1 to 10, as well as the configuration of both ends in order to adapt them to the new functional and operational requirements of the station. A new underground entrance and new emergency exits from the platforms will also be built.

The future station

Intermodality

La Sagrera will be a large interchange station for high-speed railway, suburban trains, underground, urban and long-distance buses, taxis and private vehicles.

It has been designed to accommodate annual passenger traffic of over 100 million people.

Building characteristics

It will be the largest building in the city, with dimensions comparable to those of the new El Prat airport terminal.

The new station will be partially underground, with a surface area of nearly 259,000 m2.

It will have two different levels, one for suburban and regional train traffic on conventional track and the other for high-speed and long-distance train traffic using international gauge. 

The building's top levels, accessible from La Sagrera, will correspond to high-speed services and the long-distance bus station. The lobby will have a large central space for receiving and distributing users, as well as ticket windows and a commercial area. Ten tracks will be built for high-speed services, 2 general and 8 for service, with 4 platforms.

The lower levels will be used for suburban train, underground and car park services, accessible from Sant Martí.

The main lobby will be accessible at street level from La Sagrera.

Accessibility and sustainability

The structure has been planned to guarantee universal accessibility and traffic throughout the building.

In addition, certain energy saving and thermal insulation parameters have been taken into account in order to achieve rational and efficient energy use and ensure the sustainability and adequate use of the building.

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The new station will be an intermodal building with all the typical services of a large interchange station. The railway and bus lobbies will be built at street level, with a large roof providing natural light to the entire area. The bus station, car park and railway platforms will be under the lobbies.

The new station and the future burying of the conventional line will involve a major urban transformation, creating new parks and spaces for public use.

When the Barcelona-Figueres section goes into service, and for the duration of the construction work, the passengers must go from the current lobby to the middle area of the Central Park, where the new platforms are accessed. The high-speed services will be provided on four tracks and two 450-metre platforms.

The international Figueres-Perpiñán section links through a connection branch line with the new Figueres-Vilafrant station, located in the town of Vilafant, in the Alt Empordà region.

Its construction has involved an investment of more than 5.1 million euros, and the facilities provide high standards of comfort, quality, accessibility and safety.

It has one single floor and a surface area of 12,598 m2. The UIC gauge lines of the international section and the Iberian gauge lines of the Barcelona-Portbou line currently meet at this 4-track terminal. Since December 2010, the station has been the point of arrival and departure of the new Barcelona-Paris railway line, which combines the Barcelona-Figueres route on the conventional line on Renfe Operadora series 499 trains and the Figueres-Paris route on UIC gauge tracks on SNCF TGV Duplex trains. Freight trains heading for Europe on UIC gauge tracks also go through this station without stopping.

Sustainable construction

The station's construction has taken into account environmental sustainability criteria such as the use of natural light, rational energy usage, using environmentally-friendly materials and minimizing waste.