259
- Identity: the
building blocks of
2. Literature
and philosophy
3. Art and
architecture
4. Performing
arts
5. Cinema
and fashion
6. Media and
communications
7. Food and drink 8. Living culture:
the details of
Spain on the rails
Spain’s railways have been nationalised since 1941
when Franco established the Red Nacional de los
Ferrocarriles Españoles (RENFE). By and large, their
trains are pleasingly cheap, smooth and punctual.
And the network is comprehensive.The only real
downside is that going anywhere tends be a slow
process, often taking longer than by car. Riding the train
from León to Barcelona, for example, takes over nine
hours.The AVE (Alta Velocidad Española) is the major
exception. It’s Spain’s high-speed train. When the first
section of AVE rail opened between Madrid and Seville
in 1992, journey times halved. A second line linking the
capital with Barcelona was recently completed. Other
AVE links are underway to rein in Valladolid, Malaga,
Cadiz and Valencia.
When it comes to rails, size matters
Spain’s train age arrived rather late.The first line, from
Barcelona to Mataró, opened in 1848, over two decades
after the UK got their wagons rolling. When large scale
railway building began in the 1850s, the Spanish chose
an unusual broad gauge track incompatible with the rest
of Europe.The wider gauge may have been selected to
help trains get up Spain’s steep gradients, or perhaps
the instigators figured the French would be less likely
to invade if their trains didn’t fit Spanish tracks
(confidence was at a low ebb back then). Either way,
trade with Europe was hindered and the track proved
highly expensive. Poorer regions even laid their own,
narrow gauge substitute. Over 700 miles of narrow
gauge line still exists, operated by the state-owned
FEVE. Even today, trains still have to stop and adjust
to a narrower gauge at the border before proceeding
into France.The new high-speed AVE lines are built in
standard gauge, as used by most other countries.
Getting the blues
RENFE organises various
Días Azules, ‘Blue Days’,
on which the cost of train
travel is halved.
Tunnelling to Africa
Spain and Morocco are
exploring the feasibility
of building a tunnel
under the Strait of
Gibraltar to connect their
respective rail networks.
The proposed subway
would be 40 km long,
burrowing under the
channel where it reaches
a depth of 300 metres. A
completion date of 2025
is being mooted.
