A high-speed railway between the Algarve and Andalusia could help the two regions grow, say the mayors of Faro, Huelva and Seville
Faro in the Algarve (Portugal) and Huelva and Seville in Andalusia (Spain) have signed a manifesto calling for the construction of a high-speed rail connection linking the three cities.
The manifesto urges national and EU authorities to commit to the development a high-speed railway between the Algarve and Andalusia (Spain), advocating for its inclusion as a priority project in the Trans-European Transport Network and allocation of necessary funds for preliminary work to begin. It was signed on Tuesday, February 13 in Huelva by the mayors of Faro (Rogério Bacalhau), Huelva (Pilar Miranda) and Seville (José Luis Sanz).
“High-speed railways have served the economic development of cities and regions which, thanks to a modern rail network, have experienced notable growth,” the mayors wrote in the manifesto.
As they point out, a high-speed railway could help Algarve and Andalusia “consolidate their growth”.
“A high-speed rail connection between the Algarve and Andalusia via a line that connects Faro with Huelva and Seville would be a milestone in connectivity between two territories destined to be protagonists, sharing the desire to integrate into Europe’s major rail routes,” the manifesto adds, noting that despite considerable improvement in road networks in recent years, the “lack of a cross-border rail network becomes a hindrance to the logistical development of the territory and passenger transport in two tourist-oriented areas.”
Speaking on behalf of Faro, local mayor Rogério Bacalhau said that the project could “truly change the face of both regions.”
“The creation of an Atlantic rail corridor, connecting the Algarve railway with the rest of the Spanish rail network, will allow for efficient and rapid mobility of passengers and goods, while also promoting territorial cohesion and regional and cross-border social and economic development,” he said.
Bacalhau also highlighted that it can help bring the Algarve and Andalusia closer to the European economic centre while “also taking important steps towards achieving environmental decarbonisation goals.”
Meanwhile, the mayor of Huelva explained that “territorial planning, especially for peripheral regions, is one of the EU’s territorial priorities.” Pilar Miranda also stressed that the EU’s philosophy actually defends that “neighbouring territories in different countries” should take more steps towards “cross-border cooperation.” Thus he believes the demand for a high-speed rail link between Faro, Huelva, and Seville “must have the political and financial support of the European Union.”
“Today, we, as mayors, have signed this support manifesto, but this is an open document to be adopted and signed by all administrations and social agents,” she added.
Last but not least, Seville mayor José Luis Sanz threw “100%” of his support behind the manifesto and demanded that the Spanish government “finally invest in the high-speed rail line between Seville and Huelva,” also urging the European Commission to “push for its connection to Faro.”
“I am convinced that this manifesto will also be supported by civil society and companies in Seville,” José Luis Sanz added, saying he had already made himself available to host, very soon, the second International Meeting for high-speed rail at the Ayuntamiento of Seville, focusing on the Faro – Huelva – Seville route.
michael.bruxo@portugalresident.com
