Rail transport in Spain
| Spain | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
High-speed AVE train, Madrid-Barcelona line.
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| Operation | |||||
| National railway | Renfe Operadora | ||||
| Infrastructure company | Adif | ||||
| Major operators | RENFE, FEVE, EuskoTren, FGC, FGV | ||||
| System length | |||||
| Total | 16,026 km (9,958 mi) | ||||
| Electrified | 10,182 km (6,327 mi) | ||||
| Track gauge | |||||
|
Broad gauge 1,668 mm (5 ft 5 21⁄32 in) |
11,829 km (7,350 mi) | ||||
| Standard gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) |
3,100 km (1,900 mi) | ||||
|
Metre gauge 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in) |
1,926 km (1,197 mi) | ||||
| Narrow gauge 914 mm (3 ft) |
28 km (17 mi) | ||||
| Electrification | |||||
| 3000 V DC | Main network | ||||
| 25 kV AC | High-speed lines, recent electrification | ||||
| Features | |||||
| Longest tunnel | Sierra de Guadarrama, 28.4 km (17.6 mi) | ||||
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| Map | |
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Rail transport in Spain operates on four rail gauges and services are operated by a variety of private and public operators. The total route length in 2012 was 16,026 km (10,182 km electrified).
Most railways are operated by Renfe Operadora; metre and narrow-gauge lines are operated by FEVE and other carriers in individual autonomous communities. It is proposed and planned to build or convert more lines to standard gauge, including some dual gauging of broad-gauge lines, especially where these lines link to France, including platforms to be heightened.
Spain is a member of the International Union of Railways (UIC). The UIC Country Code for Spain is 71.
The first railway line in the Iberian Peninsula was built in 1848 between Barcelona and Mataró. In 1851 the Madrid-Aranjuez line was opened. In 1852 the first narrow gauge line was built; in 1863 a line reached the Portuguese border. By 1864 the Madrid-Irun line had been opened, and the French border reached.
In 1900 the first line to be electrified was the La Poveda-Madrid.
In 1941 RENFE was created.
The last steam locomotive was withdrawn in 1975, in 1986 the maximum speed on the railways was raised to 160 km/h, and in 1992 the Madrid-Seville high-speed line opened, beginning the process of building a nationwide high-speed network.
The current plans of the Spanish government plans to link all the provincial capitals with high-speed rail, with a total estimated length of over 9000 km of high-speed railways for 2020.
In Spain there is an extensive 1,250 km (780 mi) system of metre gauge railways
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