The Future of High-Speed Rail from Alicante: Longer Journeys Due to a New Stop in Madrid

High-speed trains connecting Alicante with Madrid will include an additional stop in their routes, as part of the Government and Adif's plan, resulting in an increase in the total duration of the journeys.

The Ministry of Transport announced this Monday the new railway plan that redesigns part of the country's AVE network, aiming to install tracks for speeds of 350 kilometres per hour between Madrid and Barcelona, reducing travel time between the two cities to less than two hours.

However, from Alicante - until these new tracks are applied to the route connecting the province with the Spanish capital - this new plan will mean adding minutes to the current journeys.

The Government's decision is directly linked to the creation of a new high-speed station in Parla, south of Madrid, to, according to the Ministry, 'decongest' access to Atocha and Chamartín.

This aims to ensure that travellers from the south of Madrid do not have to travel to the city centre to catch a high-speed train, with this being an intermediate stop for trains coming from Alicante, among other destinations.

Thus, the change implies that journeys between Alicante and Madrid will be extended, as trains will have to stop at least once more before reaching their destination. Although the Ministry has not detailed how many minutes this stop will add, it does confirm that it will be part of the final design of the connection.

The Government's plan includes a significant strategic modification, based on the creation of a high-speed bypass through Parla for trains travelling between Andalusia and Barcelona. With this diversion, it will no longer be necessary to pass through Atocha or Chamartín, allowing time savings on these corridors and simplifying railway operations.