The Government Begins Expropriations to Adapt the La Encina-Alicante Railway Section to Standard Gauge

The Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility has commenced the process to expropriate the necessary land for the works to adapt the La Encina-Alicante section to standard gauge. This action is deemed "strategic" for the Mediterranean Corridor as it allows connection to the Port of Alicante, "boosting freight traffic with Europe," as well as "improving" local train services.

The works were recently awarded for 130 million euros (including VAT), and this expropriation process is "fundamental" for occupying the affected lands and carrying out the works, according to official sources. The lands belong to the municipalities of Caudete (Albacete) and the Alicante municipalities of Villena, Sax, Elda, Petrer, Monovar, Novelda, Monforte del Cid, Agost, Sant Vicent de Raspeig, and Alicante, as highlighted by the department led by Óscar Puente in a statement.

This action, along with the implementation of standard gauge between La Encina-Bifurcation Xàtiva, in its connection with the Almussafes-València Font de Sant Lluís bypass, will enable freight trains to "continue in standard gauge," both southward, connecting with Andalusia and Murcia, and northward, through the Valencian Community, Catalonia, and the rest of Europe. Additionally, the line renovation, which will allow trains of different gauges and electric propulsion to operate, "will result in improved medium-distance services between Villena and Alicante and local services between Alicante and Sant Vicent del Raspeig, enhancing the reliability and capacity of the track."

Due to its geographical location, the section is a "strategic enclave" in the area of influence of the province of Alicante. The route starts from the connections with the La Encina junction to the entrance of Alicante station. The action includes the implementation of mixed gauge on main and siding tracks. Furthermore, siding tracks for freight trains up to 750 meters will be constructed at the stations of Caudete, Sax, and Monforte del Cid, and the length, height, and width of platforms will be adjusted.

In this context, the full ownership of the areas occupied by the railway line's embankment, its functional elements, and permanent installations aimed at proper operation, as well as all defined ancillary or complementary elements and works coinciding with or protruding from the ground level, will be expropriated.

In any case, the areas essential to comply with the current legal regulations of the railway sector will be expropriated. The expropriation of the lands resulting from these criteria affects an area of 92,402 square meters (m2), according to ministerial sources.

The imposition of easements, defined as the corresponding strips of land on which it is "essential" to impose a series of burdens, will affect a total of 15,374 m2, while temporary occupations will cover a total of 107,764 m2. Most expropriations occur on rural land, classified in planning as non-developable land.

In the Official State Gazette (BOE) of April 21, 2025, the Resolution of the Directorate General of the Railway Sector was published, opening public information and summoning the owners of the affected properties and rights to the drafting of preliminary acts to take place from June 3, 2025.

The expropriations are funded by the European Union's Next Generation funds, within the framework of the Recovery, Transformation, and Resilience Plan (PRTR).

The Ministry maintains that this action contributes to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 9, which promotes sustainable, reliable, and quality infrastructure; 8 (economic development and job creation); and 7 (sustainability and energy efficiency).