The Madrid–Asturias high-speed rail line (Spanish language: Línea de Alta Velocidad Madrid - Asturias) connects the city of Madrid with the autonomous community of Asturias and was inaugurated on 29 November 2023. The line is built to standard gauge and gauge changers are provided at strategic points to allow interchange with older Spanish railways which were built to Iberian gauge.

History

The line was inaugurated in three stages. Its first 179.6 km section Madrid - Segovia - Valladolid opened for commercial service on 23 December 2007 and is the first instalment of a high-speed rail corridor in the north and northwest of Spain. AVE services reduced journey times between Madrid and Valladolid from 2½ hours to 56 minutes at an average speed of 192 km/h. The second 162.7 km section Valladolid-Venta de Baños-León opened on 29 September 2015 and was built at a cost of €1,62bn for operation at up to 350 km/h. Since then the journey time between Madrid and León was cut by 44 min to 2 h 6 min on AVE trains. In September 2021 the first test runs started through Pajares Base Tunnel (Variante de Pajares) in the railway between La Robla and Campomanes. The third section between León and Pola de Lena via the Pajares Base Tunnel was inaugurated on 29 November 2023 after 20 years of works and an investment of €4,00bn only for the 50 km section between La Robla and Pola de Lena. The entire line put in commercial service on 30 November 2023, initially by Alvia trains connecting Madrid and rest of Spanish High-speed network to Asturias up to the city of Gijón.

Features

This line is constructed for trains running at up to 350 km/h. ERTMS type II signaling and ASFA digital diversion clearance of 220 km/h and a reduction of over 70 km (28%) compared to the general layout of the Northern or Imperial Line, due to the tunnels of San Pedro and Guadarrama through Sierra de Guadarrama, 9 and 28.4 km respectively. The Guadarrama tunnel, is the longest railway tunnel in Spain and the fifth longest railway tunnel in the world and trains can travel through the tunnel at a maximum speed of 310 km/h. In the section between Valladolid and León the route comprises 78.7 km of double track and two single-track sections totalling 84 km. Gauge changers are installed at Chamartin Valdestillas, Valladolid, León and Villamuriel south of Palencia and this has reduced travel times on all routes between Madrid and Spain's north-northwest. The 20.2 km section between León and La Robla remains in conventional Iberian gauge line for a maximum speed of 160 km/h, that is due to be modernized to high-speed standards along with an additional standard gauge track by end 2024. The 49.7 km section between La Robla and Pola de Lena is a double electrified track for maximum speeds of 275 km/h. 80% of this section consists of tunnels of a total length of 40 km, including the 25 km long Pajares Base Tunnel, the seventh longest railway tunnel in Europe that runs under a very mountainous area between the Province of León and the Principality of Asturias. The line further connects the cities of Oviedo and Gijón in the Spanish region of Asturias via conventional line to the high-speed network. The line is connected with the following other HSR (High-speed rail) lines:

Route

(The figures indicate kilometres from Madrid)

Key facts

Technical details

PB = Puesto de Banalización (transition from double to single track?) PAET = Puesto de Adelantamiento y Estacionamiento de Trenes (passing loop?)

Special projects

Reduced travel times

Talgo trains were replaced by Alvia trains (RENFE Class 130) and these operate on both the high-speed line and the older lines. These trains pass through the gauge changers at Valladolid and Valdestillas or to join the General Line North from this high speed line and back by reducing their travel time by reducing the distance and increasing the commercial speed in the stretch Madrid–Valladolid. The Talgo Madrid-Galicia was diverted later by LAV circulating until Valdestillas changer, which reverses the direction of travel and change of locomotive. In this case the time reduction has been lower, only 15-20 min, while in the Galicia-Madrid train has been an advantage to using the best line to be able to recover the backlog.

Services that use these lines

Speed

The maximum permissible speed in line with ERTMS II in service are shown below. Note that trains are permitted to move at a maximum of 300 km/h over 147 km of the line.