High-Speed Lines
Ourense-Santiago Corridor
OURENSE - SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA - A CORUÑA SECTION
The Ourense-Santiago Corridor forms part of the North-Northwest Rail Corridor, which will connect the Northwest with the Centre and North of the Spanish peninsula via the Madrid-Segovia-Valladolid Corridor.
In Santiago it connects with the Atlantic Corridor (Ferrol-A Coruña- Santiago-Pontevedra-Vigo-Portuguese Border), also under construction. The completion of comprehensive improvement and electrification works on the 62 km-long section of the Atlantic Corridor between Santiago and A Coruña, has made it possible to put a new 150 km-long high-speed connection between Ourense and A Coruña into service on 10 December 2011, ahead of the service implementation date initially planned for 2012.
These are the first sections to go into service of the future high-speed line that is to connect Galicia with the centre of Spain.
INVESTMENT
The estimated total investment for works on the Ourense-Santiago section (track-bed, tracks and facilities) is 2,547 million Euros. Adding to this the investment made in the section between Santiago and A Coruña, the Spanish Government has allocated more than 3,300 million Euros to construction of the first high-speed line in Galicia, between Ourense, Santiago and A Coruña.
CHARACTERISTICS OF THE ROUTE
The 87.5 km route has been designed in accordance with the highest parameters defined for high-speed trains, with double electrified track in international UIC gauge (1,435 mm). However, it has been decided to install multi-service Iberian gauge (1,668 mm) in a preliminary stage, in order to prevent the Corridor from being in disuse until the complete Madrid – Galicia high-speed line goes into service (scheduled for around the end of 2015). This solution does not require the installation of new gauge changers or a third track on the Santiago - A Coruña line, and thus gives significant savings in investment and operating costs.
The new line will incorporate the most advanced signalling and railway safety systems.
This line presents great construction challenges as it passes through very difficult terrain. In order to overcome these obstacles it has been necessary to build as many as 31 tunnels, totalling 29.3 km under ground, and 38 viaducts with a total length of 20.4 km. Over 57% of the entire route runs in tunnels or over viaducts.
- 38 viaducts covering 20.4 km
- 31 tunnels in a distance 29.3 km
BENEFITS
- Reduces the distance of the route between Ourense and Santiago by 38.9 km, from the current 126 km to 87.1 km.
- Increases the reliability, regularity and safety of railway traffic with the use of state-of-the-art technology in automatic train driving systems.
- The journey time between the two cities is reduced significantly, from about 90 minutes to just 38 minutes.
- It contributes to the core infrastructure of Spain and the region of Galicia. The route connects with the high-speed line of the Atlantic Corridor.
WORKS OF SPECIAL INTEREST ON THE OURENSE – LALÍN SECTION
Viaducts
Examples of very long viaducts are those over the rivers Arenteiro (1,444 m), Viñao (1,357 m) and Deza 1 (913 m)
With respect to pier-height, the Barbantiño River Viaduct is the tallest, standing at 97.9 m.
Tunnels
This area has the route’s longest tunnels, including the 4,068 m long Burata Tunnel, which is the longest on the Ourense - Santiago Corridor . This tunnel also has a parallel gallery of smaller section, which connects to the main tunnel every 250 metres to give access to maintenance and emergency vehicles.
Other important tunnels are those of: Outeiro (2866 m), Piteira (2,135 m), San Fiz (2,135 m), Mundín (1,112 m) and Barro (1,494 m).
WORKS OF SPECIAL INTEREST ON THE LALÍN - SANTIAGO SECTION
Viaducts
There are several outstanding viaducts on the Lalín-Santiago section, including the Rego das Lamas Viaduct (287 m) with its top cable-stayed arch, at the junction with the AP-53 motorway.
The Deza River Viaduct (1,175 m) and the O Eixo Viaduct (1,224.4 m) have central arches built using a process of gradually placing the half-arches, with heights of 96 and 84 m respectively.
The Sáramo River Viaduct (1,465 m) is the longest on the whole line.
Finally, mention should be made of the Ulla Viaduct, which has been awarded the San Telmo 2011 Prize by the Galician Association of Civil Engineers for the best civil engineering work carried out in the region of Galicia. It also received the award for best Civil Engineering works carried out from the Scientific-Technical Structural Concrete Association (ACHE).
The viaduct is 630 m long, with a maximum pier height of 116.9 m and a large central arch spanning 168 m. This was built using two moving cantilevered platforms, which represented the true civil engineering challenge of these works.
The Ulla River Viaduct is highest on the Spanish high-speed network, both for its pier height and the height of its central arch (104.4 m).
The type of viaduct built responded to the need to safeguard the Ulla-Deza river system, thus meeting the requirements of the Environmental Impact Statement.
Other important viaducts in this part of the route are: Martixe (974 m), Covas (975.2 m) and Besteiros (730 m).
Tunnels
A total of 19 tunnels have been built in Lalín-Santiago section.
The longest tunnels are those of Carboeiro (1,420 m), Vilar do Xesta (1,215 m), Marrozos ( 1,158 m) , Vila de Cruces (890 m), O Curro (840 m), Agro (820 m) and A Pena (810 m).
STATIONS
Ourense Station
Adaption works to prepare for the arrival of high-speed trains at Ourense Station involve renovating and improving shelters, platforms and passenger and parking buildings.
A separate waiting room will be constructed in the passenger building and the ticket sales area will be redesigned to improve the flow of passengers transiting the station.
Meanwhile, tenders have already been invited for preparing basic projects and for constructing the new intermodal station, including new signal box and office buildings, extending Xesús Pousa Rodríguez Street and the basic project for covering the tracks between the new intermodal station and Santiago Avenue.
Santiago de Compostela Station
Santiago Station will be remodelled for the arrival of high-speed trains and, with the incorporation of a new bus terminal, will become an intermodal transport hub. Some town planning works will also be carried out in the station’s surroundings.
The first works comprise adaptation and partial extension of the existing platforms, moving freight and infrastructure maintenance facilities, and resolution of pedestrian and wheeled access to the station complex.
ENVIRONMENTAL AND HERITAGE PROTECTION ACTIONS
Adif assigns part of the high-speed lines construction budget to ensuring their environmental integration and compliance with Environmental Impact Statements (EISs), and to making voluntary environmental improvements.
On some points of the Ourense-Santiago HSL, environmental actions have represented up to 33% of the budget, in particular on the Lalín (Anzo) - Lalín (Baxán) subsection.
Measures taken include protection of the river, flora and fauna ecosystem of the area through which the rail corridor runs, as well as minimising sound and visual impact on the landscape.
This includes the planting of around 160,000 trees, 2.9 million square metres of hydroseeding and 647,000 m2 of seeding. Protection against noise will involve putting up 13,165 m2 of acoustic screen and 640 linear metres of tree screens. More than 20 fauna paths have also been installed at different levels, as well as 134 escape mechanisms for any fauna that may penetrate track-bed fencing.
Adif has also worked closely with Galicia’s Cultural Heritage Department to ensure the conservation of archaeological heritage affected by High-Speed Line construction. The following action has been taken in this regard: archaeological surveys and monitoring, protection and cataloguing of new elements, and archaeological involvement and excavations.
All along the route it has been necessary to take account of elements of recognised cultural value, such as the traditional grain store of Carboeiro, the Reguengo mill and the Castriño de Bendoiro archaeological site. In addition, the “Cruceiro de Pazos” stone cross has been moved and restored and the “Chousa Nova” dolmen has been excavated and restored.
Similarly, the design of certain structures has taken account of the presence of elements classified as cultural heritage, e.g. the viaduct over the Portos River, due to its proximity to “Ponte Ceballos”, and the Sáramo viaduct, because there is a traditional granary listed nearby.
Information Point and Customer Service Desk
The PIACs provide up-to-date details on the status of construction and installation work, offering personalised information on specific aspects of different projects and responding to inquiries about construction processes, travel disruption and other relevant aspects. The PIACs also process requests for specific information and customer complaints.
The PIACs offer a range of audiovisual resources and leaflets covering the main features of high-speed lines, environmental projects, major infrastructures and the benefits of development work.
PIAC Santiago de Compostela
- Address: Platform 1, Santiago de Compostela Station
- Opening hours: Monday to Sunday, 10.00 a.m. - 2.00 p.m. and 4.30 p.m. - 8.30 p.m.
- Telephone: 981 594 927
- e-mail: piac.santiago@adif.es
- Video: Status of Ourense-Santiago High-Speed Line (June 2011)
Video screened at the Minister of Public Works’ visit to the line, on 23 June 2011. In addition to explaining the current state of the works, it shows how a date of around 2015 is possible for putting the entire Madrid – Galicia line into service. - Video: Madrid-Galicia HSL (June 2010)
Description of the different sections that make up the Madrid – Galicia high-speed line, highlighting the section between Ourense and Santiago, which will be the first to be put into service. - Video: Viaduct over the Ulla River (August 2010)
The viaduct over the Ulla River is of the most outstanding infrastructures on the whole of the Ourense-Santiago line. The video shows in detail the building process used for this new viaduct. - Video: River Ulla Viaduct. Construction method (December 2009)
Description of the construction processes and details of the River Ulla Viaduct. This is one of the most extensive new infrastructures in the new Ourense-Santiago high-speed corridor, part of [...] - Video: Silleda-Vedra-Boqueixón section (December 2009)
One of the most important stretches in the Ourense-Santiago high-speed corridor is the section between Silleda-Vedra-Boqueixón, which contains two of the most notable new infrastructures in the whole corridor: the Sáramo Viaduct, which is the longest of its type in Spain, and the River Ulla Viaduct, which has the greatest deflection capacity and pier height in the country. - Video: High-Speed Atlantic Corridor. A Coruña-Vigo section (April 2009)
Main details of the high-speed line currently being constructed between Ferrol and the Portuguese border.
