History of the Spanish railroads

At the 19th century, the Spain was one of the countries poorest and economically the least developed Western Europe. It was also an unstable country on the political plan. Consequently, the arrival of the Railroad was relatively late there. The first line built in the Iberian peninsula was a short line connecting Barcelona to Mataró brought into service in 1848, although at that time a line was already in exploitation with Cuba, then part of the Spanish Empire. It is only as from the moment when, in the Années 1850, the investment in the railway sector was made gravitational for the capital foreign than the construction of railways to large scales could start.

The question of the spacing

One of the decisions of most unhappy was that, taken very early, to build the Spanish rail network with the unusual spacing of 1674 mm (about five feet six inches, is six Castilian feet). This choice of spacing was influenced by the climate of hostility which reigned, in the Années 1850 between French Spain and its neighbor. It was thought whereas the incompatibility of the railway networks could prevent any risk of invasion by France. so the railroads Portuguese were also built with the broad spacing.

This unhappy political decision will be regretted thereafter because not only it created an obstacle with the development of the international business, but it increased also the construction of new lines. It is because of the high cost of construction of lines with broad spacing, especially in mountainous region, that an important network of narrow-gauge lines will be built in the poorest parts of Spain, in particular in the North-West of the country.

Development

The network of the principal lines was about completed in the Années 1870. By way of fusion and repurchases, some large companies emergent, like the Compañia of los Caminos de Hierros del Norte of the brothers Péreire, which had obtained the concession of the Madrid-Irun line as of 1856, the Compañia of los ferrocarriles of Madrid has Zaragoza there Alicante (MZA) Spanish creation of the Rothschild (eternal competitors of the Péreire) which will be established definitively in Catalogne after fusion with the Compañia of los Ferrocarriles de Tarragona has Barcelona there Francia (TBF) on January 1st 1898, or the Compañia of los ferrocarriles Andaluces created in May 1877 by fusion of the Compañia LED ferrocarril of Cordoba has Malaga and Compañia LED ferrocarril of Sevilla has Jerez there Cadiz. The situation is more confused in the west of the country, where several companies coexist by serving areas economically poor: Ferrocarril de Medina has Zamora of Orense has there Vigo (MZOV), Sociedad LED ferrocarril of Madrid has Caceres there Portugal (MCP), Compañia del Ferrocarril de Salamanca with will frontera Portuguesa (SFP), Compañia LED ferrocarril of Medina del Campo has Salamanca, The West Galicia Railway Company Limited (WGR). In September 1928, all these companies will be nationalized to integrate the news Compañia nacional of los ferrocarriles del Oeste de España, ultimate wide-area network appeared in Spain. The state, which is brought to save small companies at the edge of the bankruptcy since the end of the 19th century, more and more frequently intervenes, especially as from the years 1920. July 3rd, 1926, a decree creates Jefatura of Explotacion of ferrocarriles por el Estado or EFE . Because of the weak economic development of Spain (up to one recent period), the Spanish railway network forever reached the density which he knows in the majority of the European countries. Thus, for example, whereas Spain has a surface 2,5 times larger than that of the Great Britain, its railway network counts 3.000 km less.

Civil war

During the Spanish Civil war in the Années 1930 the railway network was seriously damaged. Immediately after the war, the pro-Franco mode nationalized the network with broad spacing, and in 1941 the Renfe was created. The network with narrow gauge railway was nationalized in its turn in the Années 1950, giving birth later to the Ferrocarriles of via estrecha (Broad bean).

The re-establishment of the railway system after the war took many years. It was current in years 1950 to see Train S intercity express train tractor drawn by Locomotive S with vapor centenaries on ways in sorry state. In spite of that, innovators as Goicoechea knew to create modern trains the such Talgo. It is only after the disappearance of the pro-Franco mode in 1975, and emergence of Spain of its international insulation, that the Spanish rail network really started to be modernized and catch up with the rest of Europe.

Post Francoism

After the Decentralization intervened in Spain in 1975, the narrow-gauge lines which were within the limits of the autonomous communities of Spain were detached from Broad bean and were placed under the competence of the regional governments, which created, inter alia, Eusko Trenbideak and the Ferrocarrils of Generalitat de Catalunya . The towns of Madrid (Subway of Madrid), Barcelona, Valence and Bilbao (Subway of Bilbao) have autonomous services of Métro.

During last years, the Spanish railroads profited from important Investissement S, mainly financed by European funds . More recently, a Line at high speed, normal spacing, was built between Madrid and Seville. In 2003 of the services at high speed were inaugurated on the new line between Madrid and Lérida, whose prolongation towards Barcelona is programmed from here 2007 as well as later connection, thanks to an international tunnel under the the Pyrenees, with Perpignan with the French network of TGV. Other connections at high speed are in construction between Portugal and Valladolid like between Cordoue and Malaga. New lines are projected towards Valence and Lisbon.

The Spanish railroads were the target of Attentat S made by ETA and Al-Qaida, of which the Attentats in Madrid of March 11th, 2004. Consequence of the liberalization of the transport sector wanted by the European Union, the Renfe is completely reorganized on January 1st, 2005 under the name of Renfe Operadora and is divided into five head offices: regional transport and of suburbs (Regional there Cercanias), transport at high speed, Goods, and integral maintenance of the trains (MIT). In the same way, an administration of the railway infrastructures ( ADIF ) is created after fusion of GIF and the Renfe.

Projects

A tunnel connecting Spain to the Morocco and the North Africa under the Straits of Gibraltar is being studied.

See too

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