The Government delegate in Murcia, Francisco Jiménez, who visited the High Speed works in Lorca this Tuesday, did not give dates for the resumption of rail traffic in the municipality, suspended two years ago. He highlighted that the central Executive’s commitment to achieving the Mediterranean Corridor to Murcia and Almería is “inexorable” and that 44% of the 3,500 million euros of planned investment have already been executed, a total of 1,523 million euros.
Accompanied by the mayor of Lorca, Fulgencio Gil, and Adif technicians, Jiménez visited the works of the 2.1 kilometer viaduct in the district of Tercia, within the Totana-Lorca section. He recalled that the 17 sections between Murcia and Lorca are already in tender or execution and that the construction of a three-kilometer-long tunnel in the urban area, which includes the new Sutullena station, has been put out to tender for 408 million euros.
Jiménez said that, when the San Diego station is built, “as soon as possible, the commuter train between Murcia and Lorca will be reestablished, regardless of the high-speed issues.” He added that this is the commitment reached by the Government delegate and the previous mayor, Diego José Mateos, with Adif and with the Ministry of Transportation. Regarding the calendar that the authorities manage to restore rail traffic in Lorca, Jiménez only stated that “they are working as quickly as possible to execute all the sections, but at the moment we cannot consider dates.”
The visit of the Government delegate took place the day before the meeting of the Railway Board, in which the City Council and social, neighborhood and business groups will today address the progress of the project and the problems posed by its execution in various parts of the municipality.
The mayor recalled that the City Council’s main requests are that the deadlines be met and that, when the San Diego station is completed, the commuter service that connects us with Murcia and a first high-speed line that connects us can be restored simultaneously. “It connects us with Levante and with Madrid.” Gil was “deeply concerned” that the completion of the undergrounding of the urban fabric is being made compatible with the arrival of High Speed.
Adif’s deputy construction director, Pablo de la Fuente, said that in 2024 the works on the Totana-Lorca section will be completed, with seven kilometers of new platform for double track. The foundations and piers of the Tercia viaduct are finished and the deck remains to be completed, “which is quite advanced,” he explained. In 2024, electrification, track assembly and signaling will begin, since “everything is going according to plan.”
#Government #Delegation #date #arrival #High #Speed #Lorca