Hope in sight for rail travel

WORK is finally to resume on the railway between Antequera and Granada just days after an internal memo was sent out to Adif and Renfe workers warning of further waits, meaning there is hope in sight for those who catch trains from Almeria to Sevilla.

The railway, which passes through Granada on its way between the two cities, was partly closed down for work on the stretch between Granada and Antequera in April 2015. Since then, travellers from Almeria have to get off their trains and get a bus to Antequera, where they board another train.

Although the work was only expected to take four months, endless delays resulted from a financial disagreement between the company awarded the contract to carry out the work on the line and the government.

In January this year workers and machinery left the tracks after carrying out just 20 per cent of the work and the company, a temporary merger between Dragados and Tecsa, demanded more money from the government. 

Now an agreement has finally been reached and the work is expected to be finished by the summer. Although the exact amount of the increase to the budget has not been disclosed, a government representative confirmed it was less than the maximum amount of 10 per cent of the total budget allowed for by the law.