High-speed train service between Malaga and Madrid could be restored on 7 February
Railway technicians can now begin to replace the track damaged by the collision near Adamuz
Spain's minister of transport has announced the possibility of reopening the high-speed line between Malaga and Madrid on 7 February. On Wednesday, Óscar Puente said that the state rail infrastructure company (Adif) had received judicial authorisation to start restoring the track near Adamuz, where a serious train crash took place on 18 January.
Following the incident, the Andalusian high-speed line was suspended until 2 February. This week, however, the reopening of the line between Malaga and Madrid was further delayed.
Now that Adif has the permit to start working on the one-kilometre-long double track, the minister expects that the train service will be restored in ten days, making possible the reopening on 6 or 7 February.
The exact date depends on the progress of the restorative process. This week is marked by two consecutive storms, with heavy rainfall and strong winds, which could disrupt the process.
The minister has not clarified whether the full double track will be reopened
Puente has not specified whether only a single track will be restored or the full double track. If it's the former, there will initially be some delays in travel times.
New deadline
The initially planned reopening on 2 February is not possible due to the delay in obtaining judicial authorisation.
The current deadline implies that the high-speed trains of the three companies operating in the Andalusian corridor (Renfe, with its brands AVE and Avlo; Iryo and Ouigo) will be able to run again by the end of next week. If this happens, the service will have been suspended for about three weeks.
In the past two weeks, Renfe has continued operating some high-speed trains, with an alternative bus bypass as a substitute for the damaged section of the tracks. Tickets for the five-hour journey are fixed at 40 euros.
