Central government wants trains to run every 15 minutes along Costa del Sol, but without announcing deadlines or budget
Studies have already established that it will be necessary to enlarge several stations to accommodate longer trains and make more sections of the line double track
Spain's Ministry of Transport has set itself several ambitious goals to tangibly improve the C1 commuter line between Malaga city and Fuengirola on the Costa del Sol - one of the most profitable and saturated routes for rail passengers in Spain. The problem is that, for the moment, there are no budgets or deadlines for the work necessary to make this a reality.
This issue was the focus of the third Malaga province transport discussion, held on 30 September and chaired by head of sustainable transport Sara Hernández as a spokesperson for the central government. The challenge is to increase the capacity of the coastal train by 60% and to improve its frequency by five minutes, from 20 to 15 minutes.
According to the studies carried out by state railway infrastructure company Adif, it would be necessary to double the track between Malaga Airport and Campamento Benítez - a project that has been promoted for a while now. In addition, five stations will have to be enlarged and adapted to accommodate 100-metre-long trains: Los Boliches, Carvajal, El Pinillo, Plaza Mayor and Centro Alameda. The Benalmádena station will also have to be adapted to extend platforms to 200 metres.
"There are significant issues with connectivity and permeability between the A-7 and the AP-7, which we have to solve"
The second phase of the work, currently at the project drafting stage, involves doubling the tracks in the Torremolinos, Benalmádena and Campo de Golf sections. Last but not least, there are other tasks such as the renewal of control points, operation and signalling systems.
Coastal train
There is still no news on the coastal train. As Sara Hernández said, the contract for the feasibility study for the whole project, from Nerja to Algeciras, was outlined in June.
This report has a drafting deadline of 18 months. "The different types of rail services that can respond to the needs are addressed and several tasks are carried out in parallel. One of them is the compilation of background information and previous studies, many of which have already pointed out certain possible routes," the government representative said.
"We are making progress on identifying the most innovative construction methods, which will not hinder profitability and will make the project viable. The demand study has already been launched, using a model capable of accurately measuring traffic allocations by mode."
Motorway tolls
No progress has been made in answering one of the main demands of the Costa del Sol mayors - launching discounts for the regular users of the AP-7 toll motorway. According to Hernández, the road "is already heavily discounted by more than 50%".
On the one hand, she stated, many drivers are unaware of existing discounts for recurrent use. On the other, what most influences them to opt for the free A-7 is that "there are major connectivity and access issues between the two high-capacity roads".
What Hernández was referring to is the lack or scarcity of access to and from the motorway, as it was designed as a long-distance road with the idea that there would not be as many links to adjacent municipalities. "Even so, information and communication campaigns have been launched over the last year, succeeding in attracting traffic. Structural measures are necessary so that we can effectively tackle recurrent transport problems," Hernández concluded.
