Adif Alta Velocidad (Adif AV) has reached the midpoint in the construction of a key new railway link in Madrid, connecting the high-speed lines (LAV) from Madrid to Barcelona and Madrid to Levante. This project is set to significantly improve direct rail connections between Spain’s northeast corridor and the north-northwest regions of the country.
Adif Alta Velocidad (Adif AV) has reached the midpoint in the construction of a key new railway link in Madrid, connecting the high-speed lines (LAV) from Madrid to Barcelona and Madrid to Levante. This project is set to significantly improve direct rail connections between Spain’s northeast corridor and the north-northwest regions of the country.
New direct link between major lines
With an investment exceeding EUR 110 million, the project involves building a dedicated rail platform to create a direct bypass (baipás) between the Madrid-Barcelona and Madrid-Levante high-speed lines. Currently, trains on the Madrid-Barcelona route start or finish at Puerta de Atocha station. The new connection will allow these services to continue to Madrid Chamartín-Clara Campoamor station, utilising a standard-gauge tunnel that links the two major Madrid stations and part of the Madrid-Levante line.
This infrastructure will enable passengers travelling from the northeast corridor (Aragon and Catalonia) to continue to destinations in the north-northwest of Spain without needing to change trains, and vice versa.
Enhanced access to airport and future stations
Additionally, trains from Barcelona will gain direct access to Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport via the standard gauge connection under construction from Chamartín. The bypass will also allow northeast corridor trains to reach the planned through station at Atocha, currently being built beneath the existing Puerta de Atocha terminal.
Technical challenges and progress
The connection is being constructed in a complex area bounded by the M-45 and M-50 motorways and the Perales del Río neighbourhood in Getafe. The project faces several technical challenges due to numerous existing infrastructures and protected natural areas.
Adif AV has already completed over half the rail platform works, including extended geotechnical surveys and archaeological excavations. Work is advancing on drainage, embankments, road realignments, and utility relocations.
Significant progress has been made on structures, notably the 656-metre Mayoral Viaduct—the longest on the bypass. The first seven spans of the deck are complete, with the eighth nearing completion. Both abutments are finished, and work on the 19 piers is ongoing, with most foundations and capitals already constructed.
Construction of four pergolas to cross the active high-speed lines is underway. Two will span the Madrid-Sevilla line, one the Madrid-Levante line, and one the Madrid-Barcelona line. Foundations and abutments for these structures are being built.
Route details
The two new connecting tracks—one heading towards Barcelona (VSB), the other towards Madrid (VSM)—originate near the Villaverde substation. They pass beneath the M-45 motorway viaduct before turning east.
The VSB track crosses the Madrid-Levante and Madrid-Sevilla lines via pergolas, while the VSM track crosses the Madrid-Sevilla line similarly. The two tracks converge into a double-track platform near kilometre points 2/140 (VSB) and 1/989 (VSM).
Continuing east, the line crosses the Madrid-Barcelona LAV on the Mayoral Viaduct, then passes over the M-31 motorway with two overpasses. The tracks split again near kilometre points 4/020 (VSB) and 3/870 (VSM) before connecting with the Madrid-Barcelona line. The VSM track ends at kilometre 5/332; the VSB ends at 5/193 after crossing the Madrid-Barcelona line on a pergola.
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