The tentative finishing date for the
Plasenciaâ
Navalmoral de la Mata stretch pushed forward to 2025.[3] The
OropesaâMadrid stretch is the least developed part of the project, only in the informative study phase as of 2021[update].[4][3] The local government of
Talavera de la Reina have lobbied for the undergrounding of the railway as it would pass through Talavera de la Reina.[5]
Once finished by 2030, the BadajozâMadrid line is expected to provide high-speed rail services linking both cities in 2 hours 31 minutes.[4]
The BadajozâPlasencia new railway line entered in service on 19 July 2022 after its institutional inauguration in June 2022, but was not yet electrified and the speed was limited to 200 km/h (120 mph), planned to be increased to 250 km/h (160 mph) when the line will be electrified.[7][8] The first phase of the electrification is scheduled to be completed in September 2023, when a first test train will circulate between Plasencia and
CĂĄceres (the same will be done later on CĂĄceresâBadajoz, where the electrification work is also being finalized).[9]
PlasenciaâTalayuela (Oropesa)
The Oropesa segment of the track will be 68.6 km (42.6 mi) long.[4]
OropesaâMadrid
127 km (79 mi) long, it will consist of a passenger only double track segment between Madrid and Talavera de la Reina and mixed passenger-freight traffic from Talavera de la Reina to Oropesa.[4]
Extension to Portugal
The extension to Portugal, the LisbonâMadrid high-speed rail line, forms part of the
Trans-European high-speed rail network, which in turn is one of a number of the
European Union's
Trans-European transport networks (TEN-T). It was defined by the Council Directive 96/48/EC of 23 July 1996.[10] Although in 2012 the project was formally cancelled on the Portuguese side of the project as not being financially viable,[11] it was brought back in 2020 as the Portuguese government saw new opportunities.
The current plan is to open the line by sections on the "South International Corridor", between the Spanish border and Lisbon via Ăvora (and with another branch from Ăvora towards the port of Sines).
As of March 2023, the line between Badajoz and Lisbon was planned to be opened in 2024, with a journey time between Lisbon and Badajoz of 1 hour 50 minutes.[12]
The line is currently planned to fully open by 2030.
BadajozâElvas
The border section BadajozâElvas is composed of :
a Spanish section.
a Portuguese section ElvasâCaia (11 km, 6.8 mi), whose modernization was achieved in 2020.[13]
ElvasâĂvora
From Elvas to Ăvora, a 90 km (56 mi) section of new line is currently under construction, named "New line of Ăvora" (Portuguese
Nova Linha de Ăvora [
pt]), which will allow operational speeds up to 250 km/h (160 mph).[14][15][16][17]
As of March 2023, this section, designed for a maximum speed of 300 km/h (190 mph), was planned to be completed by the end of 2023.[12]
This will be the first high-speed line section to be opened in Portugal (the high-speed sections opened until then were upgraded lines with lower speed).[12]
Ăvora-Lisbon
The line from Ăvora to Lisbon via
PoceirĂŁo, with a new bridge over the
Tagus River (as in the original plan) is planned to be upgraded.[14][15][16] 100 km (62 mi) of upgraded railway is in service where Intercity trains run at 200 km/h (120 mph) on the upgraded single track.[citation needed]