Portugal’s Prime Minister António Costa has presented the Porto – Lisbon high-speed railway project during a ceremony held at Porto – Campanhã station and was accompanied by the Minister of Infrastructure and Housing, Pedro Nuno Santos and the President and Vice-President of the Executive Board of Directors of Infraestruturas de Portugal (IP).
IP has been updated the existing technical documentation since 2021 and it is estimated that in the first half of 2023 the first tenders for contracting works will be launched. The 336 km railway line be implemented in three stages with the first one covering the railway line between Porto and Soure expected to start in 2024 and to be completed in 2028. The second stage to start in 2026 includes the construction of the line from Soure to Carregado and the third one will create the connection to Lisbon, both sections expected to be completed in 2030.
EUR 4.9 billion is the estimated value of the project, EUR 3 billion of which would be required for the first phase (Porto – Soure section), with EUR 1 billion expected to be covered by the EU from the Connecting Europe Facility. The second phase would need a EUR 1.9 billion investment while the phase 3 between Carregado and Lisbon has a small impact on travel and the estimated value will be assessed later.
The project covers the construction of a new double track line and a new train station in Vila Nova de Gaia, while the existing railway stations, which will be also used by conventional trains, will be modernised and adapted to the high-speed transport requirements.
“We won’t just stick with the two closest metropolitan areas. This is essential for us to have a dimension of competitiveness on an Iberian scale. The entire country will be served because not only high-speed trains will run on this line, but also those serving the rest of the territory,” António Costa said, mentioning that the national rail system will be connected to Spain which will “strengthen our Atlantic Façade”.
It is expected that the new connection will cut journey times between the two cities by 1h30 to just one hour and 15 minutes, from currently 2h49.
The first phase of the project is scheduled to be completed in 2028 providing passengers a 40-minute reduction time between Porto and Lisbon.
“This is truly a paradigm in the way rail services relate to passengers. With this new line, we put our metropolitan areas closer to only 1 hour and 15 minutes. It is a new line that structures the existing network, giving it a speed and capacity incomparable to the current services,” the Minister of Infrastructure said at the ceremony.
The line which will allow trains to run at a speed of 300 km/h is part of the Nort-South Corridor linking Lisbon, Porto and Valença, at the border with Spain, towards Vigo.
The construction of Porto – Lisbon high-speed railway line will be financed through the 2030 National Investment Programme (PNI) as is considered on of the most important transport projects which will boost the economy, will create additional capacity on country’s rail network and will also determine the model shift towards railways. The new project would reduce the CO2 emissions by 3 million tonnes by 2050.
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