What will the new High Speed train mean for Spain?
Go to: Previous Article Next Article
The Spanish High Speed Train network has really taken off. Started in 1992 with a track that joined sleepy Seville with the hustle and bustle of the lively capital Madrid, many saw it as a white elephant by the then Prime Minister Felipe Gonzalez, an egotistical dalliance to take him to his home town at the weekends. How wrong they were. It has been a political and social triumph with local representatives fighting to secure stations in their particular region.
By last year, the expansive network of lines stretching out from Madrid, have reached M?laga in the south, Valladolid to the north and Barcelona in the northeast. Residents of Barcelona can be in Madrid in just over two-and-a-half hours-a journey that takes around six hours by car and about the same by Air Travel, when you consider the parking time, check in time, security passing and boarding time that we now experience at airports. Commuters love the fact that they are in either city centre immediately when they disembark, compare this to being stranded 12km outside the city at the Airport and having to rely on another mode of transport before finally reaching our destination of choice.
New lines have already opened to Segovia, Valladolid and Malaga in the last 2 years. New links will eventually connect France and Portugal making it realistic for commuters in the remotest parts of Spain to take a high speed train journey in comfort and absolute safety to anywhere in Northern & Eastern Europe.
So what impact does this have on Air travel? In a country where big cities are often more than 300 miles apart, air travel has been the only way to commute for more than 10 years. A year ago aircraft carried 72% of the 4.8 million long-distance passengers who travelled by air or rail. The figure is now down to 60%. It is estimated that by end of this year it will be as low as half and half.
A recent case study of the current most popular high speed link between Paris and Amsterdam returned some startling results when comparing high speed trains to air travel. When looking at the travel time, including security, check in and transfer times in the case of the air travel, the train took 3 hours and 18 minutes compared to the planes slightly quicker 3 hours giving a negligible difference of 18 minutes. The cost of a return train ticket was an affordable 55 Euro compared with the 90 Euros required to travel by air. Most importantly however, was the fact that the train only consumed 26 kg of Co2 per passenger, almost half the 50 kg of Co2 per person generated by taking the plane, which is a vital consideration with the increased awareness of our impact on the climate.
It is no surprise then that Spain's sleek new high-speed trains have stolen hundreds of thousands of passengers from airlines over the last year, slashing carbon emissions and marking a radical change in the way Spaniards travel. Passenger numbers on fuel-guzzling domestic flights fell 20% in the last year to November 2009 as commuters and tourists swapped cramped airline seats for the space and convenience of the train, according to recent figures.
The positive change for the Spanish populous is immeasurable. A cursory glance at the Spanish map reveals a large expansive country over twice the size of the UK, with small towns and villages dotted all around the countryside, meaning communications & transportation has, in the past, been difficult. With this High Speed Train network this is all set to change. It is thought that by 2020 90% of Spaniards will live 25km from a high speed rail station, opening up lines of communication to not only the major cities but also to the coast from rural areas. The network will impact transportation of agricultural goods, it will impact where and how quickly Foreign tourists can commute, spreading the Touristic dollar not just on the Southern Coast but right across the country. It will also impact how Spanish nationals look to holiday, widening the scope to explore all their country, not just their local regions.
Take the town of Almansa as an example, a medium sized town, located in the Region of Albacete between the three large townships of Madrid, Valencia & Alicante. Construction of the High Speed Train Track is well under way, which will pass right through the town, making it of strategic importance, due to its close proximity to the ports of Alicante & Valencia. It will also be located on the main train line that will provide real growth and employment opportunities for the town and its surrounding areas. This in turn is driving up land and property prices as developments in the region accelerate. Almansa, like many other small towns dotted throughout Spain, will see a rapid growth in Industry & Tourism thanks to the construction of the Train Network.
There is no doubt Spain will lead the way in High Speed Rail travel sooner rather than later and it is expected that within 5 years it will overtake Japan & even France as the country with the most High Speed train lines. The sleek new trains are the epitome of luxury & comfort, so surely it's a matter of time before the USA and the rest of the world follows Spain's lead and finally succumbs to the fact that expensive, cramped, uneconomical, carbon emitting air travel is no longer the solution to efficient modern day transportation.
This will open up new areas, new infratstrutucures, new ideas in an expansive country where before isolation was rife, now thanks to this extensive network the majority of places in Spain will be in easy reach and new projects can emerge. Think of what this will do for projects up and down the country. Check out the link below as an example of this
Article Source: Articlelogy.com
- Credit Cards A big selection of Cards in all flavors: Bad Credit Cards, Secured Cards, Prepaid Cards, Canada Cards, Low Interest Cards -
Word Count: 971
Reduce Your Debts Without Bankruptcy. See How Much You Can Save. Free Debt Analysis
