The initial segments of the trains planned in Gran Canaria and Tenerife could potentially start being tendered before the end of the current term in 2027, as envisaged by the regional Minister of Public Works and Mobility, Pablo Rodríguez, on Wednesday.
Before presenting the sustainable roadmap outlined by this department with a focus on 2040, when the regional government aims for the decarbonisation of the archipelago, Rodriguez, along with the directors general of Transport and Road Infrastructure, María Fernández and Rosana Melián, referred to the planned rail infrastructures in these two islands.
“We have been talking about trains for two decades, but I have to acknowledge that we are now closer than ever to seeing them become a reality, among other things because they have been broken down into phases. We are no longer considering the need for 4,000 million Euros to see them, but we are talking about sections costing around 300 or 400 million Euros, which can be tackled,” he mentioned.
European Funds
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Regarding the plans in Gran Canaria, he emphasised that there is also the possibility for the Cabildo to be a recipient of European funds to tackle the initial sections, and for the first time, the Canarian Government has “a dialogue with the Spanish Government which views the incorporation of the Canarian railway network into the national network favourably, providing us with stable financing.”
Although he admitted that the “quite limited financing” that the Canary Islands have had in each general State budget for these purposes “has allowed the projects to be drawn up,” Rodríguez stated that “with European funds and the possibility of joining the national network, we will be able to tender construction works.”
The initial sections in Gran Canaria are well defined, between Vecindario and the airport, where the depot is located, and in Tenerife, they are being planned between San Isidro and Las Américas in the south, he pointed out.
Model of the central train station of Gran Canaria / Jesús Montesdeoca
First Section
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Pablo Rodríguez affirmed that the tendering process, which, in the case of Gran Canaria, needs to be carried out by Gran Canaria Railways, will largely depend on the success of the European grant application made by this corporation.
“If the European grant funds are available and approved, I am convinced that in this term, we will be able to tender that first section” of the planned railway line in Gran Canaria.
Addressing this matter, the Director General of Transport of the autonomous community, María Fernández, stressed that the Canarian Government “is advocating, hand in hand with the councils, with the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility for the very first time in history, to have the Gran Canaria and Tenerife railway lines included in the State’s investment.”
Secure Funding
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“For the first time in history, we have also had technical discussions with the Ministry where we have established that we agree on the need to have a legislative tool that recognises our trains and includes them in their investment strategies, and a stable funding mechanism, such as a programme agreement or a contract, because we cannot approach infrastructures of this nature negotiating funding from one budget to another, depending on whether our vote is needed or not,” she asserted.
Fernández highlighted that the area’s Minister, Óscar Puente, “understands the need to have trains in the islands.”
“When we spoke with him, he mentioned the Pajares route (León/Asturias), which serves a population density of less than 8% of what we have in the Canary Islands, not only the local population but also tourists. There is no greater profitability than having trains in the archipelago and the necessary support for transportation modes to finally eliminate the reliance on vehicles, traffic jams, and time waste on the roads,” she concluded.
Sustainable Mobility
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Therefore, the Department led by Rodríguez plans to define in the coming months the tool that will provide stable funding for Canary Island trains, so that the next general budgets and the Sustainable Mobility Law about to be approved by the Congress of Deputies include it.
In addition, the Director General of Transport has referred to the Sustainable Mobility Law being worked on by this department of the Canary Islands Government, which, unlike the 2007 law that does not consider guided transportation, “will be an opportunity to include those modes of transport that are the present.”
“The first Canary Islands Sustainable Mobility Law will address mobility, development and sustainability. We have to start with very active citizen participation, for which we will take the necessary time because this is no longer about governments locking themselves in an office to develop laws detached from society. The one we are working on must serve, represent, be available to citizens and professionals, and must consider road and intermodal infrastructures, which are essential for more efficient, sustainable, and environmentally friendly mobility,” she emphasized.
Fernández has stated that “mobility is a social right, a unifying element.”
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“With that perspective of dialogue and putting the citizen at the centre, we are going to start a phase in which what we build, if done properly, will have greater usefulness and longevity, which is what public servants need to pursue,” she added.
