High speed: first Portuguese rail line completed

The first high-speed rail line in Portugal connecting to Spain is completed. The section between Évora and Elvas/Caia is a structural leap in updating the national rail system and increases connection to the European markets via the International South Corridor.

"Today, is a historical day. The works for the first rail line in Portugal at 250 km/hour is now completed", stated the Minister of Infrastructure and Housing Miguel Pinto Luz during the inspection trip on 16 January for the section that connects the inland Alentejo area to the Spanish border.

The around 90-km-long infrastructure is a qualitative leap in the national rail system’s capacity and competitiveness, enabling the circulation of freight and passenger trains on European standards. 

Next up is the stage to certify and instal the safety signalling system and it is estimated to begin operating in approximately one year’s time.

The new rail line is part of the International South Corridor and cuts by around 140 km the transport of freight from Sines Port, boosting the load capacity to around double of where it’s at now. The investment is around 460 million euros and increases the connection between the Sines, Setúbal and Lisbon Ports to the Iberian market.

"Sines is the largest national port and can operate more than 50 million tonnes of cargo per year and it was almost on an isolated island. With the works we’re concluding in Sines plus this, it becomes a lot closer with a drastic drop in travel times, namely to Spain", noted Miguel Pinto Luz, also indicating that these works respond to structural constraints in the country’s international connection and logistics competitiveness.

The overall aim with Spain is to connect Lison to Madrid in three hours by 2034. Yet the practical effects will be felt before. Between 2028 and 2030 it will become possible to travel this distance in five and a half hours — both for passengers and freight, boosting Portugal’s competitiveness in European transportation.