Teruel Existe spokesperson Tomás Guitarte has described the Ministry’s proposal as “ruinous and miserable” and denounced the Study for “condemning the province of Teruel to 50 more years of neglect,” since, he pointed out, “nothing will be planned until after 2061.” He therefore warned that Aragón could “lose a large part of its logistical potential.”
TERUEL EXISTE WARNS OF THE CORRIDOR’S “WEAK LINK”
One of Teruel Existe’s main criticisms concerns the corridor’s continuity. The Study maintains a single track on the Sagunto-Teruel section, with gradients of between 21 and 23 per thousand and design speeds ranging from 100 to 140 kilometers per hour, including sections at 70 km/h. These features contrast with those planned for the Teruel-Zaragoza section, where an electrified double track and speeds of between 200 and 250 km/h are envisaged.
This discontinuity, Guitarte explained, turns the 137 kilometers between Teruel and Sagunto into the “weak link” limiting the capacity of the entire route. “If you have a 137-kilometer section in a corridor whose capacity, power and service levels you reduce, then obviously what you are destroying is the corridor’s overall functionality,” he said.
At the press conference, Tomás Guitarte also questioned the multi-criteria analysis used to select the alternative ultimately submitted for public consultation. He recalled that the initial stages did include double-track alternatives and projects that later disappeared. “The technical elements were modified so that the solution they wanted would come out on top, which is the cheapest one,” he lamented.
CONNECTION TO PLATEA AND THE AIRPORT
Among the alternatives initially considered were a freight rail bypass for the city of Teruel, connections to Platea and the airport, and the basic structure for a future intermodal station. “We believe it is essential for the line to retain these elements. We are not asking for the moon; we are asking for something basic for a 21st-century railway,” Guitarte insisted.
Another objection submitted by Teruel Existe concerns demand forecasts. According to Tomás Guitarte, the Study uses traffic data from 2017 and keeps passenger rail services frozen at their current level until 2061. “It is absurd. It is clear that what they are doing is setting a trap to get the outcome they want: for us to keep the existing track and invest as little as possible,” he stressed.
