Seville - Huelva high-speed line moves to design phase

Five contracts will be tendered to design the new 95km line with an estimated construction cost of €1.61bn.

Óscar Puente made the announcement at a meeting in Huelva.

Photo Credit: Mitma

SPAIN’s minister of transport and sustainable mobility, Óscar Puente, has announced that infrastructure manager Adif will shortly tender five contracts to design the alignment of the proposed 95km high-speed line between Seville and Huelva.

Bids will be invited during the first quarter of this year for contracts to undertake design work on the following sections:

Majarabique - Valencina de la Concepción
Valencina de la Concepción - Sanlúcar la Mayor
Sanlúcar la Mayor - La Palma del Condado
La Palma del Condado - Niebla, and
Niebla - Huelva.

The Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility says it will spend €1.61bn to build the new line, which will connect Huelva to the Spanish high-speed network and improve connectivity with Seville, the capital of the Andalucía region.

Designed for a maximum speed of 350km/h, the new line will have more than 30 bridges and viaducts and a 2km tunnel. Upon completion, the Seville - Huelva journey time will be cut from 1h 30min at present to 30 minutes, including a stop at the line’s only intermediate station at La Palma del Condado.

Improving rail services between the two cities is expected to encourage modal shift from road, improving safety and sustainability while reducing pollution and traffic congestion.

“We are very much closer to making high-speed to Huelva a reality because we are not going to lose a single second in continuing to move forward,” Puente says.