Euromed is a high-speed rail service operated by Renfe along the Spanish Mediterranean coast.

Service

A current Class 130 trainset that is also used for the Euromed services
A former Class 101 Euromed trainset

Euromed entered commercial service on June 16, 1997, along a 523 km (325 mi) Mediterranean corridor, between the cities of Barcelona, Tarragona, Castellón de la Plana, Valencia and Alicante. Since January 2020 the Euromed service connects the city of Barcelona to the city of Valencia in 2 hours and 35 minutes and Barcelona to Alicante in 4 hours and 20 minutes while some services are extended to Girona and Figueres.[1]

Figueres–Vilafant railway station
Girona railway station
Barcelona Sants railway station
Camp de Tarragona railway station
Castellón de la Plana railway station
Valencia-Joaquín Sorolla railway station
Alicante railway station

Euromed currently offers the following services:[2]

  • Barcelona–Valencia via Tarragona and Castellón.
  • Barcelona–Alicante via Tarragona, Castellón and Valencia.
  • Figueres–Valencia via Girona, Tarragona, Barcelona and Castellón.
  • Figueres–Alicante via Girona, Tarragona, Barcelona, Castellón and Valencia.

The line uses parts of the Madrid–Levante high-speed rail network, further construction works between Valencia and Alicante for the increase of speed and connectivity are ongoing as of 2023 as not all sections are capable for 200 km/h and above.

Rolling stock

The service started using series 101 EMU rolling stock with bogies adapted for use on the 1,668 mm (5 ft 5+21⁄32 in) Iberian gauge track. Traction current is supplied by overhead lines, at either 3,000 volts direct current, or 25,000 volts alternating current at 50 Hz. In normal commercial service these trains traveled at 200 km/h (120 mph) and had a top speed of 220 km/h (140 mph), although 250 km/h (160 mph) was reached during testing. The fleet of six units was built by the French multinational Alstom.

In 2020 all the TGV based rolling stock was converted to standard gauge and since January 2020 replaced by the new RENFE Class 130 trainsets, capable of reaching speeds up to 250 km/h (160 mph).[3]

Accidents and incidents

On 30 March 2002 a Euromed train traveling across points at 155 km/h (96 mph) collided with a local train in Tarragona that had just left Torredembarra station. The impact caused both trains to derail, two fatalities, and 90 injured.

References

  1. ↑ "El trayecto en tren entre Barcelona y València se reducirá más de media hora". La Vanguardia. 2 January 2020. Retrieved 16 April 2020.
  2. ↑ "Renfe Timetables". Renfe. Retrieved 10 May 2023.
  3. ↑ David Briginshaw (2 January 2020). "Renfe upgrades Euromed high-speed service". International Railway Journal. Retrieved 8 May 2023.
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