The first phase of the upgrade of the Font de Sant Lluís intermodal terminal, near the port of Valencia, is about to end, enabling the start of operations on Iberian gauge. When fully operational, the facility will provide a connection in standard gauge to France and thus the rest of Europe.
“The new terminal has the capacity to handle 150,000 Intermodal Transport Units (ITUs) and maneuver up to 2,600 freight trains per year”, Spanish infrastructure manager Adif said. The Font de Sant Lluís site is operated by Grupo Alonso, which also operates the Can Tunis terminal near Barcelona.
The new area has four tracks of 750 metres equipped with a mixed gauge to handle traffic in both the Iberian and standard gauge and four more for locomotive parking. “The work carried out has also included the slabs for the storage of containers, the runways for the gantry cranes, a management building, a truck waiting area and parking for light vehicles”, Adif added.
Works continue
The works will now continue before the terminal is up and running at full capacity. The deployment of 5G coverage is part of the plan, as is a new road connection between the terminal and the Logistics Active Zone of the port of Valencia. The refurbishment of the Font de Sant Lluís saw over 50 million euros invested. Once complete, the terminal will create a standard gauge connect from the port of Valencia to the French border via the Perthus tunnel.