21 February 2008

Spain And High Speed Trains

Spain has just opened a new high-speed rail line from Madrid to Barcelona. It's Europe's longest, and the third to have been opened in Spain in the past two months. By 2010, Spain will have the most extensive high-speed network in the world. By 2020, they want 90% of Spaniards to be within 50 km of a high-speed station. In terms of replacing air travel, more than 80% of travellers between Madrid and Seville already use the AVE.

"It is ridiculous that the country that invented rail travel now has only 80 miles of high-speed track between Folkestone and St Pancras for the Eurostar trains,” Gerry Doherty, general secretary of the TSSA transport union, said. “We have to follow the example of Spain and France by making rail quicker and cheaper if we are to meet the challenge of low-cost airlines.

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