en.Wedoany.com Reported - Spanish railway infrastructure manager Adif has allocated €1.7 million for the preparation of the construction design for the second phase of the renovation of the Madrid-Vicálvaro rail freight station. The total investment in the overall renovation project of this freight station exceeds €300 million.
The objective of this second phase is to complete the remaining works necessary for the full development of the freight station, enhancing its competitiveness, interoperability, and high capacity, positioning it as a strategic logistics hub in the central region serving freight traffic on the Mediterranean and Atlantic corridors.
Specific works include: the final comprehensive reorganization of two main tracks and two loop tracks, converging them into a single corridor on the eastern side of the station to improve operational capacity, internal connectivity, and safety, while enabling direct road access without interfering with the intermodal terminal operations. The southern marshalling yard will undergo capacity expansion, adding up to six tracks for handling 740-meter-long trains and extending existing tracks. The northern marshalling yard will be designed with up to 18 tracks for handling 740-meter-long trains, freeing up space for logistics development and the introduction of auxiliary rail freight activities. The central marshalling yard will feature the construction of the eastern intermodal terminal, similar in characteristics to the western terminal already developed in phase 1.C, equipped with four tracks for loading and unloading 740-meter-long trains, concrete slabs for modal shift and temporary storage of intermodal transport units (UTIs), roads, and related facilities. Additionally, the project includes adjusting road and rail access, relocating the control center, and renovating and expanding safety, telecommunications, energy, drainage, and other facilities.
The comprehensive renovation of the freight station is divided into several phases. The first phase is expected to be completed in the last quarter of this year. Sub-phase 1.A has been completed, including the construction of four new tracks for receiving and dispatching 740-meter-long trains, and the installation of a new electronic interlocking system in the technical marshalling yard on the southern side of the station. Sub-phase 1.B has also been completed, which involved modifying the station's rail access to adapt gradients for maximum loads and 740-meter-long freight trains, and reconfiguring the main tracks around the station. Sub-phase 1.C is nearing completion, including the construction of the western intermodal freight terminal, which will feature an intermodal marshalling yard with four through tracks, electrified at both ends, equipped with a concrete slab for handling and storing intermodal units, and three automated rail-mounted gantry cranes (A-RMG). This terminal can handle 740-meter-long trains, with an annual capacity of 150,000 UTIs and a storage capacity of 2,500 TEU under the gantry cranes. This phase also completed urbanization and road works for the new intermodal area, including access from a new roundabout on the M-214 highway, truck loading/unloading zones, inspection stations, and parking lots, as well as the renovation of an old station building into a new technical management building.
The Madrid-Vicálvaro freight station is strategically located within Spain's logistics landscape, connecting the national goods distribution network and serving as a junction between the Mediterranean and Atlantic corridors. It is part of Adif's network of strategic intermodal and logistics terminals, which includes terminals such as Fuente de San Luis in Valencia, La Llagosta and Can Tunis in Barcelona, Júndiz in Álava, Valladolid, Majarabique in Seville, and Plaza in Zaragoza. These terminals are undergoing comprehensive renovations to improve facilities for modal shift of goods, expand capacity, and enhance connections with the main road network and other infrastructure such as ports and airports.
Advancing the renewal of freight stations is part of the "Freight 30" Initiative (Iniciativa Mercancías 30) of Spain's Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility (Ministerio de Transportes y Movilidad Sostenible), aimed at strengthening the central role of rail freight in intermodal logistics chains, with the goal of increasing rail freight's market share to 10%, promoting transport decarbonization and sustainable development. These actions align with Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 9, which focuses on building resilient, sustainable, and high-quality infrastructure to support economic development and human well-being.
