The president of the Generalitat of Catalonia, Salvador Illa, is betting on maintaining the high-speed service between Barcelona and Madrid while the railway corridor remodeling works are carried out. His position contrasts with one of the alternatives being studied by the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, led by Óscar Puente, which has raised the possibility of completely interrupting circulation during the works. The measure would make it possible to reduce execution times, but would temporarily leave the two main Spanish cities without high-speed railway connection.
The debate has opened after Puente acknowledged last Friday, October 30, that the Government is considering suspending the service for a period of between 12 and 24 months, following a renewal model used in Germany. The minister explained that the usual practice in Spain consists of combining the works with train circulation, using nighttime maintenance slots or carrying out punctual interruptions. However, he admitted that this formula prolongs the works and can affect the punctuality and reliability of the service.
The alternative of keeping the trains in circulation, which Illa favors, poses the challenge of carrying out the improvements without completely interrupting one of the country’s most used railway corridors. The final decision will correspond to the Ministry of Transport and the infrastructure manager Adif, which will have to assess the technical conditions of the works, their deadlines and the consequences for travelers.
Óscar Puente studies closing the Madrid-Barcelona line for up to two years
The possibility of paralyzing the corridor was announced by the Minister of Transport during his appearance to offer explanations about the Urda (Toledo) railway accident. Puente assured that his department is reconsidering the way in which major railway renewals are carried out, especially after the difficulties recorded during the actions carried out on the Madrid-Seville line.
"It is one of the things we are evaluating," the minister said, who compared the Spanish system with the German one. As he explained, in Germany it is customary to suspend circulation during certain comprehensive renovations, which makes it possible to work without the limitations imposed by the passage of trains. In Spain, on the contrary, priority has been given to maintaining passenger transport, even if that means carrying out the works over longer periods.
The minister put figures to the two alternatives. A renovation that could take five years while maintaining service could be completed in approximately 12 or 24 months if circulation were interrupted, according to his estimates. However, he also acknowledged that a decision of this kind would provoke opposition among users, since it is a fundamental connection for professional, family, and tourist travel.
Puente clarified that the closure is not decided and that, in no case, would it be immediate. He also maintained that the debate responds to the need to improve the reliability and punctuality of the infrastructure, even though it has been raised in the context of the Adamuz and Urda railway tragedies.
A corridor used by more than 14 million travelers a year
The high-speed line between Barcelona and Madrid constitutes one of Spain's main transport connections, with approximately 14.3 million travelers during 2025. According to the data collected by EL PAÍS, the corridor moves around 40,000 passengers daily and concentrates intense railway activity, with commercial services from Renfe, Iryo and Ouigo.
A complete interruption for one or two years would have important consequences for travel between both cities, but also for municipalities and provincial capitals located along the route, such as Zaragoza, Lleida or Tarragona. Companies that regularly use the train for their professional travel and the sectors linked to tourism and services would also be affected, especially in the face of the need to resort to alternative means of transport.
The absence of an alternative high-speed network with equivalent capacity complicates the possibilities of replacing the affected services. Although there are conventional connections, road transport and flights between Madrid and Barcelona, none of those options by itself reproduces the capacity, travel times and frequencies of the current rail corridor.
For this reason, the debate is not limited to the duration of the works, but also affects the mobility of thousands of citizens and the ability of the administrations to offer alternatives during the renovation.
Engineers and Catalan companies also reject the total closure
The position in favor of maintaining circulation coincides with the reservations expressed by the College of Civil, Canal and Port Engineers of Catalonia and the employers' association Pimec, which have shown their concern about a possible complete interruption of the line.
The dean of the professional college, Pere Calvet, considers that the volume of passengers and the strategic importance of the corridor make it difficult to assume a prolonged suspension. Although he recognizes that stopping the trains would allow the works to be accelerated, he proposes studying an intermediate solution based on reducing the services and maintaining part of the service while the works are carried out.
The business organization Pimec has also called for planning and dialogue with the affected sectors before adopting a decision. Catalan companies consider it necessary to improve the state of the infrastructure, but warn of the economic repercussions that would result from leaving the high-speed connection with Madrid without service for such a prolonged period.
The maintenance of a reduced rail service thus appears as one of the alternatives that could be studied, although its viability will depend on the type of works and the safety guarantees that can be established. Not all interventions allow circulation to be combined with the presence of workers and machinery on the tracks.
The remodeling will begin with the section between Madrid and Calatayud
The high-speed Madrid-Barcelona renovation project contemplates actions on the infrastructure to improve the reliability, capacity and operating conditions of the trains. One of the first sections planned is the one between Madrid and Calatayud, in Zaragoza, which accumulates maintenance problems and speed restrictions.
Puente himself has acknowledged that this segment presents room for improvement. Over the last few months, train drivers have conveyed warnings about the condition of certain points on the track, which has led to the application of temporary speed limits to ensure the safety of traffic.
The remodeling is also related to the project announced by Transportes to raise the maximum speed of the corridor to 350 kilometers per hour, an initiative that was made public in November 2025 with the aim of reducing travel times between the two cities. However, the current priorities include restoring confidence in the service, reducing incidents, and improving punctuality.
The decision on how to carry out the works will have to take into account both technical conditions and the needs of travelers, especially in a corridor in which recent incidents have already caused delays and schedule changes.
The decision remains pending while the debate on railway safety grows
Illa's approach introduces a position favorable to preserving connectivity between Catalonia and Madrid in the debate opened by the Ministry of Transport. The Generalitat does not have the authority to unilaterally decide on the closure or continuity of state-level high-speed services, but the consequences for Catalan mobility and the economy place the autonomous government among the administrations interested in the decision.
For now, Transportes has not announced a definitive schedule of interruptions nor has it approved the suspension of the service, so users should not interpret Puente's statements as confirmation that the line will close for one or two years. Before that, the projects, execution conditions, and possible mobility alternatives will have to be specified.
The underlying issue is how to reconcile the renovation of an essential infrastructure with the continuity of a transport used daily by tens of thousands of passengers. Closing it would make it possible to speed up certain actions, while keeping traffic running would reduce the immediate impact on travelers, although it could prolong the works.
With Illa in favor of preserving the service and Transportes studying the possibility of suspending it, the remodeling of the Barcelona-Madrid high-speed line becomes a decision of special importance for Spanish mobility. The result will depend on technical evaluations and the ability to find a solution that makes it possible to improve the infrastructure without compromising the safety of workers and passengers.