A rail connection from the Portuguese city of Évora to the Spanish border is nearing completion. Construction work should be completed before the end of the year. Once operational, the railway should help make shipments from the Port of Sines more competitive.
The Évora-Spain railway is the largest rail project in Portugal of the past 100 years, according to publication SIC. Works should round up in the coming days, after which the new piece of infrastructure will undergo testing. The line is scheduled to be operational in mid-2026.
The new rail connection is part of the Southern International Corridor, an umbrella term for various rail projects that seek to improve connectivity from the cities Lisbon and Setúbal, as well as the Port of Sines, to Spain. Those projects should reduce the transit time to Spain by over three hours, double capacity on the route and facilitate 750-metre long trains. “A huge gain for competitiveness”, infrastructure manager IP commented earlier on the projects.
Previously, Portugal announced a 120 million euro investment in the Vendas Novas railway, which similarly seeks to improve hinterland connectivity for the Port of Sines. The freight-only line will receive station upgrades, signalling and GSM-R towers, track superstructure replacements and will be open to 750-metre trains. The Vendas Novas line does not immediately lead to Spain, but rather connects Sines to the northern parts of Portugal.