Adif reserves track slots for Ouigo's low-cost high speed trains between Malaga and Madrid

Ouigo's low-cost high-speed trains are a step closer to appearing on the tracks after they were officially allocated space to operate on the high-speed Malaga-Madrid line.

Adif Alta Velocidad last week approved the timetables of the services for the circulation of trains on the railway network from 10 December and for the whole of 2024. It opens the market so respective railway companies can plan ticket sales for the coming Christmas period and next year.

The new timetables include the allocation of the double-decker trains on the Madrid-Malaga high-speed line. Ouigo will be the third and last rail operator to offer its services in the South-Andalucía high-speed corridor, which has been long awaited by passengers as the subsidiary of the French company SNCF is known for its low-cost approach, offering tickets all year round from just nine euros.

Ouigo also has the trains with the largest capacity in the Spanish market: Alstom's Euroduplex, with two floors and 509 seats. They are already being tested and will start operating commercial services in the second half of next year.

Routes from Malaga are yet to be finalised, as the trains will operate alongside the Seville route, and the company has a total of five routes to link Madrid with both Andalusian cities (including a stop in Cordoba). It is expected there will be two daily return services between Atocha in Madrid and Malaga's María Zambrano stations, which will add 28,000 seats a week into the popular rail corridor.

More competition

Nationally, private operators will launch rail services on other lines in the country, particularly on the routes between Madrid, Segovia and Valladolid; and on the new Madrid-Murcia line.