The arrival of high-speed rail (see ITRANSPORTE 69) requires the adaptation of the passenger buildings in the four main stations of the Autonomous Community of Extremadura: Plasencia, Cáceres, Mérida and Badajoz, to the needs of the new railway service. Ineco, in addition to directing the work on the four stations and working on the track renovation, has drafted the remodelling projects for Adif Alta Velocidad, the Spanish railway infrastructure administrator, which include the buildings, entrances and the surrounding area, as well as the platforms, shelters and underpasses.

All of the works follow general guidelines with the common objectives of improving the sustainability and accessibility of the facilities. Outside, the main works consist of the creation of plazas in front of each station, in which the pedestrian is given centre stage. On the façades, the installation or renovation of shelters will highlight the entrance doors. The aim is to improve the integration of the stations into the urban fabric.

In the interior, the general concept is to gain more natural light, for which suspended ceilings are eliminated, increasing the height in the halls and opening up the spaces. The use of sustainable materials, improved air-conditioning efficiency and the installation of LED lighting are all part of the project. Furthermore, all of the spaces are totally accessible, and include technologies such as Wi-Fi, electric vehicle charging areas and personalised information points.

In order to carry out these works, it has been necessary to make the service compatible with the works, which is why personnel have been moved to provisional modules so that they can continue to provide service, and the works have been carefully designed to guarantee passenger comfort at all times.

Badajoz station

A new urban space

It was opened in 1866 and initially had a façade topped by a pediment with a skylight, decorative elements widely used at the time. These were later replaced by a rectangular screen façade with 24 openings and a shelter. The housing for railway personnel that began to be built around the station became what is today the neighbourhood of San Fernando. The station has two platforms.

The works reorganise the exterior space, where pedestrian traffic predominates, while inside the passenger building the spaces are being completely remodelled. A large plaza will be created in front of the building as a space for relaxation and enjoyment, integrating it into the neighbourhood, respecting the symmetrical composition and enhancing the building as a scenic backdrop for Avenida Carolina Coronado. On the main façade, the openings in the lower band are strengthened by metal frames in the form of lanterns and there is a lattice of metal slats above. These match existing slats in the central body of the entrance and their orientation changes, giving movement to the arrangement.

A new shelter will be installed outside to cover the entrance. The interior remodelling is centred on the central body, which houses the hall and main entrances, and the eastern body, which contains various auxiliary facilities. A double height hall is created with an open and naturally lit waiting area, enhancing the central character of the space. The underpass and platforms are also being remodelled.

Cáceres station

A renovation that respects the ‘skin’ of the building

The existing station dates from 1963 and replaced the original one, inaugurated by King Alfonso XII in 1881, which was demolished. The new building was designed longitudinally, with a symmetrical façade formed by a central body and two lateral bodies with towers at both ends. The main entrance is protected by a large semi-circular shelter. Inside, the waiting room is decorated with a ceramic mural by the artist José Luis Sánchez, dedicated to the conquest of America, and the platform façade has a stained glass window with railway motifs (tracks, turnouts and signals).

The station has two platforms with three operational tracks for passengers and an underpass equipped with lifts.

The work includes urban operations to ‘create the city’ and works on the passenger building that highlight the value of this architectural piece. The conversion of the public space in front of the passenger building into a large square connects the station to the rest of the urban fabric. The arrangement opens the passenger building up to the city, making it part of the architectural scene of Cáceres. Pedestrians, cyclists and public transport (taxis and buses) will converge in this new urban space.

The integration of the passenger building is achieved renovating the building’s ‘skin’, while respecting its dimensions and construction. It is made up of a lightweight set of horizontal aluminium slats, which will shape the structural bays of the building, giving movement to the façade and breaking up the flatness of the existing building. A new car parking area will be created, which will be detached from the façade of the passenger building, giving the complex space and clean lines.

In the interior spaces intended for travellers (hall, toilets and underpass), the finishes will be renovated and the sunlight and ventilation conditions will be improved. All this is accompanied by new facilities that improve the energy efficiency and comfort of the station.

In the platform area, the shelter will be renovated with new waterproofing, and the underpass between platforms will be resurfaced and given new flooring, as well as new glass railings combined with stainless steel.

Plasencia station

Opening up spaces while preserving the building’s identity

The station was opened in 1893, as part of the ‘Ruta de la Plata’ line to Astorga, which is now closed. The passenger building, in a simple and sober style, has a central body of two floors with three linteled openings each, and two side annexes. The roof is a gabled tile roof with the original support structure from 1893, which has been preserved with energy improvements in the insulation. It is located outside the town centre, south of the Jerte River. It has two platforms (one is a service platform), with three tracks and several more that are no longer in use, a freight dock (which will house the cafeteria space) and a building formerly used for railway residences.

The project is mainly focused on development, entrances and buildings. A new station square will be created, with road access and parking adjacent to the station buildings, separate from the development area and façades of the buildings. The cargo building attached to the station, which will house the future cafeteria, will be refurbished, creating a transition space between it and the passenger building, which will be marked with a new shelter, as well as the taxi stand and the main entrance to the station.

In the passenger building, all of the interior spaces are being renovated by extending the hall to the current cafeteria area (which is being moved to the renovated building); new restrooms are being built, and a double height main space is being created by demolishing the first floor, which gives a greater sense of space and light. The works include structural reinforcement, remodelling of the installations and improvement of the building roofs, conserving the support structures of the roofs (riveted wood and steel), to preserve the buildings’ original character. During the construction phase, materials that have added value due to their special historical characteristics, will be reused, such as part of the original tiles, which will be restored and reused for the roofs. In the interior, the furniture and lamps are being updated with more modern designs.

Mérida station

Restoring harmony

This is the largest station in the Extremadura network in terms of size and passenger traffic, and several lines converge here. It was opened in 1864 and is very close to the historic centre of the city. As with the previous buildings, the passenger building is arranged with a central body with two floors plus side buildings. It has more than 10 tracks and a cargo area.

In the solution designed for the Mérida station, special attention has been given to harmonising the spaces that make up the complex in order to recover the spatial quality that has been lost over time. In terms of development, a new well-defined access plaza space will be created while respecting the retaining wall structures. This will create a homogeneous space in which the pedestrian area is differentiated from the roadway, creating transition spaces that frame the large backdrop of the passenger building’s façade. This same idea was adopted inside, with the hall as an articulating element and a new corporate style. This hall has been designed as a dominant space, incorporating passenger services and the commercial area. The edges of the existing platforms will be adapted to allow passenger access to the new trains. The underpass will also be completely renovated.

The stations of Extremadura, yesterday and today

The four original stations were opened between 1864 and 1893, and from an architectural point of view they have the characteristics of the period: simple lines and a functional design typical of 19th century industrial buildings. The regulations at that time established general guidelines for the different existing railway companies to maintain a certain aesthetic continuity in their facilities. It was recommended that stations located in rural areas be simple constructions that fit in with the surroundings, with decorative elements reserved for urban stations. All of them share a common feature: the passenger building as the main construction, plus other annexed facilities, which include locomotive and wagon depots, workshops, warehouses, docks, scales or watering (water supply to steam locomotives), such as the one at Cáceres station. There used to be a house for the Station Manager and sometimes also for the railway staff, as in Mérida and Plasencia, and in some cases these gave rise to entire neighbourhoods, such as San Fernando in Badajoz.

As for the passenger buildings, these are symmetrical constructions, with one or two floors, with the main façade in a central body that is higher and more prominent than the rest, with annexes on both sides, and gabled roofs, as in the case of the Merida station. The walls were usually made of stone, painted white or light colours, and the door and window openings, corners and ledges were framed in ochre, brown or blue-grey.

Works in Plasencia. The works include the restoration and reuse of some original materials, such as wood, rivets and part of the roof tiles. In the picture, the station’s shaded walkway.

Ineco’s technicians and engineers are working on projects, construction management and the provision of technical assistance for Adif and Adif Alta Velocidad, together with construction companies and other companies in the sector, for the modernisation of the conventional lines currently in operation and for the construction of the Madrid-Extremadura high-speed line, designed for passenger traffic with a maximum speed of 300 km/h and freight traffic up to 100 km/h.

The work is intense. In addition to having designed the Plasencia-Cáceres section, the company has been contracted for the management of platform works, track assembly, electrification, substations, removal of level crossings, noise protection, regulation of the effects on roads of the Regional Government of Extremadura, infrastructure conditioning, etc., all of which is essential for the trains to begin running on the new infrastructure. The doubling of the track between Cáceres and Mérida, the control, command and signalling installations, telecommunications, the electrification of the line and the remodelling of four stations on this route are the latest works in which Ineco is currently involved.

Most significant figures for the new infrastructure.

A route along the ancient Roman Silver Route

The Plasencia-Badajoz section, with a total length of 144.5 km, is the main axis of Phase 1 of the commissioning of the line. It has been designed with a platform for standard-gauge double track and mixed traffic, except for the Mérida-Badajoz section, which will be put into service with a single track. It passes through a large part of the province of Cáceres, on a route that in the section from Plasencia to Mérida runs parallel to the A-66 highway, the Ruta de la Plata, a modern testimony to a section of the ancient Roman road that crossed Extremadura from north to south.

The Tajo and Almonte viaducts, the latter having received several awards as the world’s longest arch-railway bridge, and the Santa Marina tunnel are the most notable individual works in this section. Experts from Ineco directed the work on this tunnel and are managing the works on the Plasencia, Cáceres, Mérida and Badajoz stations, for which they designed the remodelling projects.

Construction works: platform and track installation

The platform has been completed except for the sections of the Mérida bypass that are not included in Phase 1. In regard to track installation, the Mérida-Badajoz section has been completed, along with the installation of track 1 of the Cáceres-Mérida section, both in single track. The installation of the Plasencia-Cáceres section is more than 90% complete, and construction of  Track 2 of the Cáceres-Mérida section began in February 2020.

Track assembly work on the section between Plasencia and Cáceres in October 2019.

The technical construction challenges

The implementation of electric welding and the new method for rail unloading

Track installation involved the application of techniques that are rarely used in Spain, such as electric welding right on the track using mobile equipment, a procedure used with the high-speed line to Toledo and on the high-speed line between Makkah and Madinah in Saudi Arabia. This system produces higher quality, more durable welds than those produced by aluminothermic welding, aiming to achieve the goal of ‘zero maintenance’. The work is completely automated and if executed sequentially with stress neutralisation, both activities can be optimised.

In addition to the rail supplied by rail trains in 270-metre bars, rail in 108-metre bars was supplied on conventional platforms consisting of two sextets, which required the development of a new unloading procedure to optimise work performance.

The systematisation of the electric welding procedure with mobile equipment presented a major challenge. After supervising the execution of more than 1,400 welds and the subsequent performance analysis, the information gathered by Ineco made it possible to compare the technical work procedures associated with this activity with existing procedures. This experience could potentially lead to an improvement in projects and technical reference documents, in line with the company’s Strategic Plan ATENEA 2019-2022.

Unique infrastructures

Santa Marina, the longest tunnel on the line

The line between Plasencia and Badajoz has two tunnels totalling 4.4 kilometres in length, with 3.4 kilometres corresponding to the Santa Marina tunnel, in addition to its 1.5 kilometres of evacuation galleries. Located halfway between Plasencia and Cáceres, this tunnel crosses the Sierra de Santa Marina and is designed for high-speed double track and mixed traffic.

The Santa Marina tunnel crosses the regional Alentejo-Plasencia fault, one of the largest on the Iberian Peninsula. Ineco managed the construction of the 3.4 km tunnel that passes through the Los Castaños pass.

The tunnel was built using the New Austrian Method, has a waterproofing system that uses PVC membranes and a concrete lining. The waterproofing was done using an unconventional system, with sections of reinjectable double PVC membrane, to provide it with a high degree of watertightness to allow the recovery of the aquifer in the mountain range.

22 viaducts totalling over nine kilometres

The line has a total of 22 viaducts totalling more than nine kilometres. The most important viaducts are the ones crossing the Tajo and Almonte rivers in the section between Plasencia and Cáceres. The Almonte viaduct holds the world record for arch bridges and the Tajo viaduct is a close second in terms of span, with both representing outstanding feats of engineering.

The Almonte viaduct, awarded the prestigious Gustav Lindenthal Medal, crosses the reservoir using a long concrete arch with an upper deck and a main span 384 m long, making it the world’s longest high-speed concrete arch bridge.

In addition to the Almonte and Tajo River viaducts, the Vadetravieso viaduct, 1,596 metres long and crossing the river with the same name, is also worthy of note.

Designed by Spanish engineer Juan José Arenas and built by the Spanish-Portuguese consortium FCC Construcción-Conduril, this structure respects the habitat of the Alcántara reservoir, following the measures indicated in the EIS with maximum respect for the surroundings and the environment, including corrective measures to restore the environment and landscape and to facilitate the crossing of the infrastructure by the fauna. The viaduct also included the installation of innovative bird screens, which reduce wind thrusts on the structure, causing the birds to ascend in flight to avoid colliding with the trains.

Wildlife and ornithology reports

The richness of the natural habitat of the region of Extremadura, its pastureland and natural parks –including the Monfragüe, Cornalvo, and Los Barruecos natural parks– are areas of exceptional beauty and refuge for a multitude of birds and other species. From white storks to protected black storks, golden eagles, griffon vultures, kestrels, grey herons, spoonbills, and bustards, 74.1% of the territory of the Autonomous Community of Extremadura has been declared an Important Bird Area.

Ineco prepared monthly reports on the barrier effect on wildlife crossings and the effect on bird life in sensitive areas such as the Llanos de Cáceres y Sierra de Fuentes and the embalse de Alcántara special bird protections areas

The works pass through areas with different degrees of protection: A Special Bird Protection Area (SPA), a Site of Community Interest (SCI) –also known today as a Special Conservation Area (SCA)–, a Habitat of Community Interest and an IBA (Important Birds Area). Studies and preventive and corrective measures for the environmental impact were therefore required, which meant biological stops, population control reports, monitoring of the barrier effect, monitoring of lek mating areas, control of seeded crop areas, etc. Ridges were also built to protect wildlife, which uncovered an archaeological site with a building covering more than 500 square metres, an environment that was studied, catalogued and protected.

Electrification comes to Extremadura

Ineco is leading these works in the Plasencia-Badajoz-Portuguese
Border section, the first electrified section in this region, with the process to be continued in the future to connect to Madrid.

The excavation work, installation of rebar and pouring of foundations for the posts, gantries and overhead line anchors represented a milestone in the history of the Extremadura railway.

Extremadura was the only region in Spain without a single kilometre of electrified track; not for metro, tram, or conventional rail, let alone high speed. Work is currently progressing on the electrification of the Plasencia-Badajoz-Portuguese Border section, both on the overhead contact line and its associated systems and on the traction substations and transformer substations.

The overhead line catenary, designed by Ineco engineers, is an interoperable C-350 type overhead catenary system, suitable for running at 350 km/h, according to the regulations and specifically, the TSI for the energy subsystem and the UNE EN-50119 standard, which means that electric trains can run from Extremadura to Europe.

These works are being carried out on the 125-kilometre stretch between Plasencia and the Peñas Blancas split, approximately 15 kilometres north of Mérida. Approximately 4,200 catenary posts will be erected in this section, covering some 105 kilometres of double track and 20 kilometres of single track, with two railway stations: Plasencia and Cáceres.

The catenary works were divided into four areas, covering a total of 125 km of track

In addition, in regard to the conventional network that complements the high-speed network, work will be carried out on the Monfragüe-Plasencia line (between the Plasencia junction and Plasencia station), Madrid-Valencia de Alcántara (between the junction with the high-speed line section and Cáceres station) and on the Aljucén-Cáceres line (junction with the high-speed platform of the Cáceres-Aldea del Cano section and Cáceres station), as well as the southern branch of Cáceres. This project also includes the electrification of stations, sidings (PAET) and block stations (BP).

In the Plasencia station, tracks 1, 2 and 3 will be electrified, and in Cáceres station, tracks 1, 2, 5 and 7. The block stations will be electrified at the Terzuelo split and at KM 46/308, as well as at the Aldea del Cano PAET. Work and maintenance of the electric traction substations and auto-transformer substations on the Plasencia-Badajoz section is also underway. This work includes the energy installations required for the 2×25 kV electrification of the Plasencia-Badajoz section, which are mainly the Cañaveral (Cáceres), Carmonita and Sagrajas electricity substations (both in the province of Badajoz). In addition to these substations, there are a total of 12 associated auto-transformer substations.

Meanwhile, Adif has already started the bidding process for the electrification of the section between Mérida (Peñas Blancas) and Badajoz, which requires technical approval once it has passed the environmental procedures.

From phone blocks to Full Supervision

The renovation of the railway installations in the Plasencia-Cáceres and Mérida-Badajoz sections is combined with the implementation of the national network’s most efficient and advanced protection and traffic control systems on the new infrastructure in the Plasencia-Badajoz section. Ineco is providing the experience that it has acquired on high-speed lines in Spain to provide technical assistance for the traffic control installations.

The ultimate goal of the work on the control, command and signalling installations, for which Ineco is providing technical assistance to Adif Alta Velocidad, is to outfit the Plasencia- Badajoz-Portuguese Border section with the ERTMS Level 2 train protection system, which will make it possible to travel at the maximum commercial operating speed of 300 km/h in the region for the first time.

Previously, Extremadura had a single unelectrified track that still included routes with telephone blocking and mechanical interlocking, which is why the modernisation of the installations to adapt them to the new standards required on high-speed lines (unifying them with the new platform sections), poses a more than obvious challenge and constitutes the greatest technological leap forward undertaken in the railway sector at a national level.

To guarantee this, an intermediate phase of renovation of the installations has been designed that will allow the Plasencia-Badajoz section to be put into operation under the protection of the digital ASFA system at a maximum speed of 200 km/h. This initial phase will result in a significant increase in safety, capacity and regularity of operation, since it will have double track along practically the entire route, eliminating telephone blocks and centralising control and management of the line at the Seville control centre.

The signalling installations are based on interlockings, together with their intermediate blocks, which allow the safe movement of the trains through the application of SIL 4 systems. The solution designed for the railway network on the Plasencia-Badajoz section has electronic interlockings based on Alstom’s Smartlock technology, with BAB and BLAU automatic block systems. In order to facilitate future maintenance, the interlockings are being upgraded. Some of the interlockings are electrical or even mechanical, as in the case of the Cañaveral or Aldea del Cano installations, which are still operated with a telephone block and will be replaced by a BAU type block. This equipment consists of six electronic interlockings located in Plasencia, Cañaveral RC, Cáceres, Mérida, Guadiana and Badajoz, supported by train detection systems installed in the field (Bombardier EBITRACK 400 coded audio frequency track circuits and Frauscher axle counters), Modular LED trackside signals from ICF, ASFA digital balises from Indra and Siemens MD2000 single-phase electric point machines to replace turnouts and derailers still equipped with manual switch stands, and Thales three-phase point machines for turnouts on the new platform.

The overpasses and tunnel entrances are equipped with Logytel Falling Object Detectors (FODs), which trigger trackside signals in the event of an alarm

Unlike other lines, the energy system designed in this project includes a main supply from the electricity company at all locations, using the overhead line as a backup system. This solution, combined with the inclusion of medium voltage networks as an alternative supply in certain sections, makes it possible to minimise the number of emergency power generator sets to be installed. This all results in a more stable, efficient and clean power supply, reaffirming the railway’s commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

These unique features, together with the particularly rich and protected environment, add to the complexity of Ineco’s work, which ranges from the drafting of the basic projects, environmental and expropriation documentation, inspection and testing of systems in the field, to the final supervision of the process of powering the installations, not to mention providing advice on the legalisation and contracting of the supplies.

Ineco is participating in the drafting of the basic projects, environmental documentation, expropriations, field tests, legal advice and final supervision

As a final complement, the deployment of the Bombardier ERTMS Level 2 system is planned for the installations of the new line between Plasencia, Cáceres and San Nicolás split, as well as on the line between Mérida and Badajoz. This train protection system is managed through two RBCs located in Cáceres and Badajoz, which are in constant communication with the electronic interlockings supported by the GSM-R mobile communications network, and grant movement authorisations to the trains on the lines that they protect.

The Santa Justa control centre in Seville will provide support for the centralised control and efficient operation of these installations. The Thales CTC will unify the remote control of the interlockings of lines L026 (Plasencia-Cáceres-San Nicolás split), L500 (Monfragüe-Casar de Cáceres triangle) and L520 (Villanueva de la Serena-Badajoz), which was previously distributed between the Chamartín and Manzanares CTCs. A new Bombardier ERTMS central control station will be responsible for controlling this train protection system, and a new Indra remote control for auxiliary detection systems will provide operators with all the necessary information regarding the falling-object detectors.

Videographic of the Badajoz station.

Correction: On page 14 of the print edition, the reference regarding the “province of Extremadura” should be “province of Cáceres”.

Modernisation of conventional lines

In parallel with the construction of the new line, Adif is also renovating its conventional lines, replacing material in some sections and refurbishing level crossings. The aim is to improve the track superstructure, unifying conditions to adapt them to the rail traffic demands. The work involves the improvement of the reliability, safety and quality of the track, reducing the level of incidents, increasing traffic speed and reducing travel times. In future editions of Ineco’s magazine, experts will describe the different conventional-track works being carried out, such as the completed works on the Aljucén-El Carrascalejo section, or the projects in the Monfragüe-Plasencia section that will soon be opened for tenders. Planned works include the renovation of the track superstructure, construction of walls, ballast retaining walls and service walkways, and platform drainage improvements.

New fixed and mobile installations

Work is currently underway on the Plasencia-Cáceres section. The civil works and laying of the optical fibre in the fixed telecommunications installations have been completed, as well as the civil works and installation of the mobile communications equipment between Cáceres and Badajoz. Other projects to be carried out after the commissioning of Phase 1 include:

• Renovation of the track between the Monfragüe and Plasencia stations.
• Doubling of the track between Mérida and Aljucén.
• Renovation of the track yard and accesses to the stations of Cáceres, Mérida, Aljucén and Badajoz.
• Connection of the Montijo station to the HSL.
• Reconfiguration of the splits at La Isla (Mérida) and San Nicolás (Badajoz).
• Remodelling and sustainable integration of the Navalmoral de la Mata station.
• Signalling and telecommunications installations on the doubling of the track in the Cáceres-Mérida section, final location of the Mérida bypass and renovation of the track yards at the stations.
• Logistics platforms in Mérida and Navalmoral de la Mata.