The Administrator of Rail Infrastructure (ADIF) announced this Monday to ABC Córdoba that the entire works of the Almodóvar del Río bypass, which will serve to shorten the travel times of shuttles between Seville and Málaga or Granada without passing by Cordoba – which will lose connections with these cities – “will be completed in 2025», date on which it would also begin providing service.
Adif, to questions from this newspaper on the situation of Works on the Almodovar bypassassured this Monday that “currently, the infrastructure works of the Almodóvar del Río bypass, in Córdoba, are practically completed.”
The bypass by Almodovar del Río This is a 1.78 kilometer long section which aims to connect the high speed line (LAV) Madrid-Seville with high speed line Córdoba-Málaga. With this branch, the Spanish Government intends to reduce travel times from Seville to Malaga and Granada by 20 minutes, since it will not be necessary for trains to pass through Cordoba and will have to make the maneuver to reach the other route in their season . .
Indeed, the frequencies of daily trains from Córdoba with Seville and Malaga or Granada will probably be reduced when the branch is operational, since trains will be able to travel directly from Seville to Malaga and Granada (and vice versa) without having to stop in Cordoba. However, Renfe never specified how many lines our city would lose, a decision it always claimed it would make and announce when the bypass was in service.
Late
The branch would be operational next year almost four months late since its allocation in 2019 for 20 months
In this sense, the administrator’s officials clarified that after several delays in the execution of the project, the connection works are practically completed and gave details on their condition: “The secondary track is pre-mounted on ballast , and the next phase is the assembly of the switches which will connect the bypass with the VBL Madrid-Seville and Córdoba-Málaga.
In addition, they add the sources of ADIF consulted by ABC Córdoba that “the catenary posts are completed”, as well as “a first phase of assembly of the track has been carried out, in which all its elements have already been laid, which will then be leveled and leveled”. An example of track assembly is the image that illustrates this information, with the rail already ready on the viaduct of the Alcázar de San Juan-Cádiz conventional line.
Previous state of work in January 2024
Alongside the completion of the works on the Almodóvar track itself, the ADIF also highlighted that another series of necessary interventions were being carried out in parallel so that, in the near future, trains could run through the Almodóvar del Río bypasses. “Work on the necessary safety, signaling and communications facilities is underway,” so “once these control-command and signaling works are advanced, work is underway to connect the bypass to the high-speed transmission lines Madrid-Seville will be completed in parallel. and Córdoba-Málaga” and, finally, also in coordination with the “installation of electrification” of the branch.
For all these reasons, the administrator concluded that the works infrastructures are “almost finished“, as planned according to the latest data at the end of this year 2024, but the objective now is that “all of this work It will be completed throughout 2025“.
Delay in deadlines
The work of ‘bypass“there has been an accumulation of continued delays in the time limit. It will be completed and ready for operation next year, meaning it will be completed four years later than originally planned. In this case, the bypass was awarded in October 2019 with a completion time of 20 months. It should have been ready in June 2021. Ultimately, it will not be ready until 2025, four years later, at the earliest.
The work started late. Perhaps justified by the containment of the pandemic. The work began in July 2020. According to the 20 months of work planned, it should have been ready in March 2022.
Advantage and disadvantage
The connection will reduce travel time between Seville and Malaga by 20 minutes or Granada and Cordoba will lose frequencies.
He Government He gave up to three different deadlines for his conclusion in his parliamentary responses, until he stopped providing them due to evidence of his non-compliance. The latest was that it would be in the last quarter of 2023. A year has already passed since then.
ADIF He returned to the issue yesterday in consultation with ABC, which published a year ago the poor state of execution of the work and the more than predictable delay until 2025. Also the enormous accumulated expenditure, well above what was planned. The prize value was 11.9, but the total number of works will exceed 31. According to the administrator, the work will finally be completed in the year 2025.
