Renfe Malaga-Madrid high-speed rail: bus transfers required despite line 'reopening'
High-speed rail services between Malaga and Madrid resume Wednesday with a 'hidden' bus leg due to ongoing repairs in Álora
High-speed rail journeys between Malaga and Madrid are now on sale, according to state railway operator Renfe's website, but there's a catch: part of the journey available from Wednesday onwards will be by bus.
Although Minister of Transport Óscar Puentе announced on Monday that the high-speed line in Andalucía will reopen between Tuesday and Wednesday, this only concerns full access in Cordoba, Seville and Granada.
Why is Malaga lagging behind? While the tracks damaged by the train crash near Adamuz recover normality this week, the recovery of the slope that gave way in Álora during the heavy rains in February is still a pending task.
Renfe is working on a bus transfer to bypass the affected area of Álora from Wednesday
This means that full high-speed train journeys between Malaga and Madrid are still not possible. The most optimistic forecast points to the line's reopening by the beginning of March.
To take passengers between the Costa del Sol and the capital, Renfe is studying two options: bus to Antequera-Santa Ana and then a high-speed train to Madrid or a bus to Cordoba and again a high-speed train to Madrid.
Whichever option Renfe chooses, it will be the only way to travel between Malaga and Madrid partially by train for two or three weeks, until the tracks in Álora are in a good state.
