The Granada railway station is located in the Los Pajaritos neighbourhood, inside the ring road formed by Avenida de la Constitución, Camino de Ronda and Avenida de Fuente Nueva. Since 2015, the station has been undergoing a major refurbishment to enable it to accommodate the arrival of the Madrid-Córdoba-Granada high-speed line. The works have included redevelopment of the forecourt and surrounding area, enlargement of the station including the construction of a new building, new platforms, expansion of the car park and refurbishment of the existing passenger building, which was built at the beginning of the twentieth century. One of its side areas in the east wing has been renovated to create an innovative Renfe Space to house the company’s Sales Channel, Service Centre and Atendo service.

The idea behind the project was to design a single open area to provide passengers with service in different zones, but all part of a common space. The interior volume, which does not reach the ceiling, defines the different uses of the space, separating the Atendo area located next to the entrance and the Service Centre, and leaving the Sales Channel area at the back defined by a Renfe corporate panel.

An interplay of lights

The suspended ceiling creates a taller island in the single space, an interplay that gives it certain fluidity, and in which the different kinds of lighting highlight the common area, different service areas and each of the counters, framed by alcoves featuring Renfe’s corporate image.

The side that overlooks the platforms was conceived as an interior façade where the waiting area is located, maintaining the existing gaps that frame the views of the platforms, and with areas of the building’s exposed brickwork.

This Renfe Space combines technology and innovation. It includes a queue management system for the available services with multiple options for users to take their turn for ticket sales or customer service, depending on their needs. The system is linked to Renfe’s image and advertising management system, as well as to the public address and lighting of the service points, which provide information to users who require assistance.

An open space designed with separate areas and equipped with service points for people with disabilities, each with a magnetic induction loop for people with impaired hearing

Another built-in system is the Digital Addressable Lighting Interface (DALI) which makes it possible to adapt the lighting to the number of people in the space and the time of day, with 3 possible configurations: day, night and semi-night. Each of the areas also has a service point for people with disabilities, which includes a magnetic induction loop for people with impaired hearing.  The latter consists of a communication system for hearing-aid users. The magnetic loop reduces background noise significantly, thus improving intelligibility. The result is that the user receives clear sound with the proper volume.

The Granada Renfe Space combines the essence of the station with innovation, enabling the accessibility and integration of all of the users of the station’s services. It will operate every day from 6:15 am to 11:30 pm.

This project paves the way for other locations such as the future Renfe Space in the Vigo-Urzáis station.

The Alhambra is a palace and fortress complex built between the 9th and 16th centuries on the top of a steep hill facing the Albaicín quarter of Granada. Boasting some three and a half million visitors a year, it is, after the Antonio Gaudí-designed Sagrada Familia in Barcelona (4.5 million visits a year), the second most visited tourist attraction in Spain and it is also usually included in the list of the most popular in the world.

It consists of a military fortress, a medina quarter, several palaces and gardens and other buildings, mostly built by the sultans during Muslim rule over the Iberian Peninsula after moving their capital to Granada. This period ended with the conquest of the Nasrid Kingdom of Granada, the last territory held by the Muslims, by the Catholic Monarchs in 1492, the same year as the discovery of America by Christopher Columbus.

At this point, the complex passed into the hands of Christian monarchs who added some buildings, such as a Renaissance-style palace commissioned by Emperor Charles V in 1526 and the Church of Santa María, completed in 1618 on the site of an old mosque. After a period of neglect, the arrival of the Romantic era in the 19th century renewed interest in the complex and restoration works began. In 1898, ownership of the Alhambra was transferred to the Spanish state and shortly afterwards it was declared a national heritage site. In the early 20th century, the trust that today manages it was created, placing it under the auspices of the regional government of Andalusia, and, in 1984, it was listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site.

The palatine city

Despite the sprawl of the site, surrounded by two thousand metres of wall and thirty towers, and the variety of buildings of interest from different periods, what has made the Alhambra world famous are its palaces and gardens from the Muslim era and, in particular, the Nasrid dynasty. In spite of the characteristically low quality of construction materials used in Islamic architecture –stone, brick and wood– and the exterior sobriety, the beauty and artistic quality of the interior rooms make it unique. Its gardens and courtyards, adorned with pools, ponds and fountains –such as the famous fountain in the Court of the Lions, perhaps the most recognisable image of the complex– are also responsible for the Alhambra’s uniqueness and universal reputation.

It is located on an elevated site known as Sabika Hill that was initially used as a military post, probably beginning in Roman times. The first palace was built in the mid-13th century by the ruler Muhammad ibn Yusuf ibn Nasr, better known as Ibn al-Ahmar, a name from which the name ‘Alhambra’ is believed to be derived, although other theories suggest that the name means ‘red fortress.’ Though this is not the colour of the buildings, the name is attributed to the optical effect produced by the torch lighting at night during construction. Successive rulers continued to add palaces and rooms, and reinforced the walled military zone, the Alcazaba, which is notable for the Place of Arms, the Sail Tower, the Weapons Tower and the Adarve Gardens. The walled site can be accessed by several gates, the most important of which are the Gate of Arms, the Gate of the Poor Quarter, the Gate of Justice  and the Gate of the Seven Floors.

The citadel (medina), contained houses for nobles and commoners, as well as public baths (hammam), ovens, workshops, underground stores and water tanks. This is the location of the Generalife Gardens and Nasrid Palaces: the Mexuar, the Comares Palace, or Palace of Yusuf I, and the Palace of the Lions, or of Mohammed V. In this area –and not by chance, but to symbolise the triumph of Christianity over Islam–the Palace of Charles V, noted for its unusual circular courtyard, was erected three centuries later. Opposite the palaces is the entry to the Rauda, the royal cemetery, and the Generalife Palace, a house of recreation for the sultans of Granada, famous for its orchards and gardens, and adorned with fountains and irrigation ditches. These gardens include an exceptional construction: the Water Staircase, which features handrails containing channels to carry a stream of water.

Some of the most highly representative elements of Islamic architecture that abound in the Alhambra are its courtyards, some of the most notable of which are the Court of the Lions, with its famous fountain; the Court of the Wrought Iron Grille, with its balcony on the south side; the Court of Comares, or Court of the Myrtles, with its ditch flanked by hedges; and the Court of Lindaraja, over which
the viewpoint of the same name looks.

The palaces house the rooms and halls used by the sultans to receive foreign dignitaries, celebrate parties or impart justice, all with fabulous decoration covering the walls, arches, pillars and ceilings, and combining calligraphic elements, tiles and muqarnas (pieces of plaster similar to a honeycomb). Of these, some of the most notable are the Hall of the Ambassadors, where the sultan’s throne was located; the Hall of the Abencerrajes, the Hall of the Two Sisters
and the Hall of the Mocárabes, with its spectacular star-shaped vaults. In the Hall of the Kings, the ceilings are adorned with paintings, while in other rooms, such as
the Gilded Room, the ceiling is made of wood.

Other elements of great interest are its overlooks, which offer panoramic views of the city, such as the Queen’s Dressing Room, originating from the Nasrid period but modified during the Renaissance, and the Lindaraja  or Daraxa Viewpoint, which, in addition to its views, stands out for its sumptuous tiling.

On 25 June, the new AVE high-speed line between Madrid and Granada officially opened with an inaugural journey attended by the acting prime minister, Pedro Sánchez (in the centre of the image), the acting minister of Public Works, José Luis Ábalos, the president of Adif, Isabel Pardo de Vera (right), the president of Renfe, Isaías Taboas, and the secretary of state for Infrastructure, Transport and Housing, Pedro Saura, (left), among other guests and dignitaries.

Commercial operation began the following day, on 26 June, with three services in each direction between Granada and Madrid, a distance of 568 km and with a maximum travelling time of 3 hours 19 minutes. A daily service has also been established between Granada and Barcelona with a travelling time of 6 hours 25 minutes. All services stop in Cordoba.

The new high-speed line has three stations, in Antequera, Loja and Granada, and is equipped with ERTMS level 2 and GSM-R mobile communications (see report on page 10).

From left to right: The presidents of Adif and Ineco, Isabel Pardo and Carmen Librero, with Pedro Ruiz, Moisés Gilaberte and Laura López, from Ineco.

Pre-validation tests on the line between Antequera and Granada ended on 20 December 2018, when traffic control was transferred to Adif Alta Velocidad. The infrastructure manager then gave the green light for the start of a period of internal ERTMS traffic testing between Antequera and Granada, prior to reliability and training processes. Once this phase is complete, the high-speed AVE connection between the capital of Spain and the city that is home to the Alhambra will be a reality.

The 114 kilometres of line between Antequera and Granada and its direct connection to Málaga via the Gobantes Junction have been built predominantly in standard gauge, 33% double-track and the rest single track electrified at 25 kV with a top speed of 300 km/h. The exception is 26.3 kilometres of mixed-gauge line consisting of three rails where the line passes through Loja and at the entry into Granada. With the commissioning of the new line, Granada is now finally connected to the rest of the Spanish high-speed network through the Córdoba-Málaga line.

Ineco has participated in the development and construction of this line since its beginnings, carrying out various projects that include consulting and technical assistance for the environmental management of the entire final stretch in Andalusia; platform construction management, project and construction management of the Antequera, Loja and Granada high-speed stations; clearance studies and adaptation of the Loja tunnels; consulting and technical assistance for the construction management of track assembly, and power, signalling and communications facilities along the entire line.

Comprehensive rail traffic management

Traffic testing was the final job carried out by Ineco for Adif and Adif Alta Velocidad. In 2018, Ineco’s traffic management team directed traffic control and performed functional testing during phase 3 of track assembly, facilities and overhead contact line works on all sections. Ineco’s qualified personnel were responsible for comprehensive rail traffic management, which involved directing operations, supervising safety in dangerous areas of the works and ensuring compliance with train safety, construction and testing regulations prior to handover to Adif. The team also managed safety facilities from the CTC located in Granada and was responsible for managing geometric and dynamic testing with laboratory trains to ensure optimum traffic conditions at >10% of the maximum speeds allowed at each point.

The first steps: the construction projects

In 2005, as part of its 2005-2020 Strategic Infrastructure and Transport Plan, the Ministry of Public Works, through a public tender, awarded Ineco the infrastructure and track construction project for the high-speed line between Bobadilla and Granada, part of the Tocón-Valderrubio stretch. The section was designed to allow general speeds of up to 350 km/h and 220 km/h over points. The total length of the section was 14.082 kilometres, with the most significant structures being a 734-metre-long viaduct over the Brácana ravine and the 650 metre Íllora cut-and-cover tunnel. With the project in the home stretch prior to handover, archaeological remains were discovered in the town of Escóznar known as ‘El Pago de El Tesorillo,’ a place mentioned vaguely in a scientific article as the location of undetermined Roman ruins. In order to minimise impact on the area, the railway gradient was raised, and the embankment was replaced by a 150-metre viaduct. The design of El Tesorillo viaduct consisted of five 30-metre spans, a maximum height of 5 metres and detachable beams, in case further excavation is required in the future.

Neolithic village and Roman villa

To reach Granada, at an altitude of 738 metres above sea level, AVE trains have to ascend from 380 metres at Antequera, Málaga, crossing gentle plains interrupted only by the complex geography near the town of Loja, flanked by two mountain ranges and crossed by several rivers and aquifers, where the train line has followed a meandering route that dates back to the 19th century.

It is here when they pass through this town – and until the Loja bypass is built – that fast AVE trains have to slow down to travel along the old conventional track adapted with a third rail, a project carried out by Ineco, as well as the 2.3 kilometres of the access to Granada station.

The company approached this complex passage through Loja by carrying out the platform construction and connection route project, including the construction of a new station, renovation of the track and permeabilization of the route. Ineco also adapted and reinforced three small tunnels and the existing geotechnical structures between them for the passage of the AVE high-speed line and several grade crossings were eliminated and replaced by new access routes.

In the construction of this infrastructure, Ineco adopted measures to eliminate or minimise the impact on the environment and cultural heritage, in compliance with legislation. Many affected heritage sites are defined in the construction project, meaning that corrective measures are taken before the works begin. Other elements are found in the subsoil and are only discovered when earthmoving begins, making it necessary to coordinate all of the archaeological activities.

This was the case of the discovery of a Neolithic village near Antequera that affected the route of the AVE high-speed line. A Roman oven from the 1st-century AD was discovered, which Ineco and Adif turned over to Antequera museum in collaboration with the Regional Government of Andalusia’s Department of Culture and the local city council. Removal, structure consolidation and final transfer works were done by a specialized company, Taller de Investigaciones Arqueológicas. Another important site discovered in Antequera was the ‘Casería Mayorga/Silverio’ Roman villa and necropolis, a discovery that highlighted the economic and demographic importance of the Vega de Antequera region in Roman times. One of the most important conservation measures carried out during the infrastructure construction works was the recovery and transport of the most significant elements of this residential villa complex (its mosaic floors and a sculpture of its owner) to the Antequera Museum.

Platform and track assembly works

Construction of the platform began in 2006, with Ineco and Adif in charge of construction management. Track assembly was carried out in several sections: Antequera-Loja, Gobantes-Bobadilla, Loja-Tocón, Tocón-Granada and Granada station and accesses. In the Antequera-Loja and Tocón-Granada sections, Ineco provided track assembly technical assistance to construction management, while, in the Loja-Tocón section and the Granada station and accesses, the company was in charge of construction management for the platform and track.

The goal of the project was to put the track into service on the platforms that would allow high-speed traffic to take advantage of the longer section compatible with the current arrangement. The Antequera work base was also connected using 1.435 gauge to the new high-speed line in order to facilitate maintenance operations on the Antequera-Granada line during the operating phase.

Signalling and communications systems

Ineco was responsible for technical assistance in relation to the supervision and oversight of project drafting, execution of works, maintenance and upkeep of signalling control points, train protection systems, CTC and auxiliary detection systems, as well as the technical assistance for fixed telecommunications, protection and security facilities, and GSM-R.

When it begins to operate, the line will have ERTMS Level 2. Ineco is currently participating in the dynamic testing of the ERTMS L2 system, as well as ERTMS/ETCS level transitions between the Córdoba-Málaga and Antequera-Granada high-speed lines.

LSB (lateral signalling block) was used with AVE mode ASFA as a backup system to the ERTMS, using audio frequency track circuits and axle counters in mixed track areas. On the conventional line, which will be accessed from Antequera-Granada, an automatic single-track release block was established and the automatic single-track block between Granada and Albolote was adapted.

The facilities that were made available for performing the ERTMS tests included Antequera HS, and Íllora and Granada HS electronic signalling control, with their associated trackside and cabin elements, as well as LSB along the entire Antequera-Granada line; the updating and integration of new equipment for the Antequera Santa Ana CTC; falling objects detectors in elevated sections and tunnel mouths, hot-box detectors, lateral wind detectors and their integration into the remote control of auxiliary detection systems on the Córdoba-Málaga high-speed line; fixed and mobile telecommunications network (GSM-R), fibre optic network, SDH transmission systems, IP/MPLS data network, switched telephone network, etc.; video surveillance and access control and the installation and integration of new CTC equipment into the Antequera control and regulation centre and the centralised control centre in Madrid-Atocha.

Prior to these tests, the Córdoba-Málaga high-speed line was connected via the Gobantes junction for integration into the LZB systems, adapting the field elements, electronic signalling control and existing train protection systems in Antequera Santa Ana belonging to the Córdoba-Málaga high-speed line, due to the new connection of the station to the Antequera-Granada high-speed line and the replacement of the electric signalling control of Granada station with ENCE, integrating the connection of the Antequera-Granada high-speed line.

Energy supply and civil protection of tunnels

In terms of energy systems, Ineco was in charge of technical assistance on works relating to electric traction substations and auto transformation centres, energy remote control and overhead contact lines and associated systems, such as point heating, tunnel lighting and power supply to consumers, in addition to civil protection and safety facilities.

The company was also commissioned to carry out an independent safety assessment (ISA) of the control, command and signalling system, as well as an independent assessment under Regulation 402/2013 (ASBO) of the rest of the TSI subsystems, their interfaces and their secure integration for the commissioning of the line.

Three high-speed stations

Ineco drafted the projects to adapt three stations on the last section of this line to high speed: Antequera, Loja, and Granada. At the Antequera station, the project included a new passenger building, access road, car park, pedestrian connection and track overpasses to connect to the conventional station.

For Loja’s new high-speed station, Ineco was responsible for drafting the project and construction management. It also drafted projects for an underpass between platforms and is currently finalising a project for a footbridge in the neighbourhood of Esperanza. The last works on the station include the construction of the canopies over its central platform.

As for the Granada station, the project for the arrival of high speed included the renovation and extension of its passenger building. The result is a building with a U-shaped layout that brackets the track yard and platforms, which are joined by the head house. The extension is carried out by means of a large canopy that joins the existing and new buildings; it extends and looks out over the plaza to mark the new entrance and is curved to protect the new concourse from the passage of the metro. This outer covered threshold is the hinge point between the existing building and the extension. The eastern façade of the boarding area is transparent to enhance views of the Alhambra and Sierra Nevada.

This report was made possible thanks to special contributions by Pedro Asegurado and Pablo Nieto, specialized railway technicians; Fernando Díez, traffic expert; Javier Cáceres, biologist; Marisa de la Hoz, Diego Martínez, Aránzazu Fernández and Lidia Sainz-Maza, civil engineers; Carlos Montero, Antonio Sancho, Carlos Palomino and Arantxa Azcárraga, architects; Manuel Fernández, electrical engineer; Rafael Soler, mechanical engineer; Javier Millán, telecommunications engineer; Laura L. Brunner, bachelor of physical sciences; Manuel González, industrial technical engineer; Daniel Pérez, signalling expert; David Carrasco, industrial engineer; Fernando Cardeña, communications, video surveillance and access control expert; Javier Barragán, overhead line technician; Rafael Arévalo, energy expert; Francisco Perrino, auxiliary detection system expert; and Manuel Tirado, ERTMS expert.