Pedro Sánchez inaugurates, along with His Majesty the King, the last section that completes the arrival of the AVE high-speed train to Galicia

Chamartín train station (Madrid) - Zamora - A Gudiña (Ourense)

"The Government of Spain has always been clear that the arrival of the AVE to Galicia was an absolute priority", stressed the head of the Executive on his arrival at Ourense station, after completing the first full AVE journey between Madrid and Galicia, together with His Majesty King Felipe VI, the Second Vice President, Yolanda Díaz, and the Minister of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda, Raquel Sánchez; among other authorities.

The arrival of the high-speed train to Galicia culminates a process began in 2007 with the commissioning of the Guadarrama railway tunnel, which together with the opening of the section between Zamora and Pedralba de la Pradería in 2020 and the definitive arrival of the AVE to Ourense, will reduce the train connection between Madrid and Galicia to two hours and fifteen minutes.

The first high-speed line between Galicia and the central plateau enters service after the inauguration of the last section between Pedralba de la Pradería and Ourense. "It is a route spanning almost 120 kilometres of spectacular scenery, with 31 tunnels and 32 viaducts that give a good idea of the enormous complexity involved in its construction", Sánchez emphasised.

Ourense, a key high-speed distribution centre

The AVE link to Galicia not only cuts connection times with Ourense, but also turns the Galician province into a key high-speed distribution centre and proportionally reduces the journeys between Madrid and the other major Galician cities, cutting by about an hour the arrival times to A Coruña, Santiago de Compostela, Vigo, Lugo and Pontevedra; and by almost an hour and a half the arrival time to Ferrol.

"Today we are giving a real turnaround to Galicia's connectivity with the centre of the peninsula, which, of course, does not end here", said the President in reference to the Government's commitment to the implementation of the actions that will complete this high-speed line, extending it to Santiago de Compostela, where it will link up with the Galician Atlantic Axis that runs from Ferrol to Vigo and to the border with Portugal.

This railway infrastructure has a state investment of 10.95 billion Euro, of which 10.06 billion Euro have already been executed, 92% of the total planned. "Today we are celebrating the achievement of a historic milestone, not only because it is the culmination of a long journey but, above all, because of the way in which it projects us into the future", said Sánchez.

A boost to Galicia's economic and social reality

The President of the Government of Spain took advantage of the inauguration of the AVE to Galicia to review the possibilities offered by the high-speed train to the autonomous region. "Connectivity is key to breaking the sense of isolation that Galicia has known all too well for too many years. This is why the transforming power of this high-speed line is unquestionable", the Chief Executive pointed out.

In this sense, the arrival of the high-speed train in Galicia will facilitate mobility between large cities, favouring the emergence of new business opportunities, as well as the direct transmission of knowledge and the expansion of synergies between individuals and companies from different territories.

Likewise, the AVE will provide an unquestionable boost to the tourism industry in Galicia and will act as a solid factor of territorial cohesion, in line with the Government's commitment to the demographic challenge and the adequate provision of services to all citizens and in any region. "Only by improving intermobility will we be able to combat the challenge of depopulation in the region more effectively", stressed the President of the Government.

Galicia, a main player in the new economic reality

Sánchez highlighted Galicia's leading role in the new economic reality, where the Galician community will play an important role in areas such as energy transition, sustainable development and the fight against depopulation through digitalisation and the improvement of infrastructures.

"We need the best version of Galicia to make a decisive contribution to the transformation and modernisation of Spain; and this high-speed line is a decisive step in that direction", said the president. "High speed links cities, companies and political communities, but, above all, it links people. And it is this path of unity that allows us to achieve the most ambitious goals", he concluded.

Non official translation