The boost that the new accesses to the port of Barcelona should provide for the transport of goods by train requires the fundamental participation of the two actors directly involved: the port itself and the railway infrastructure manager (Adif). Although there are still years to go before the pending infrastructure becomes a reality, both parties are aware of the need to start thinking about its management and have signed this Wednesday in front of a notary the creation of a joint company made up of 50% by the Port Authority of Barcelona and Adif.
Under the name Train Port Barcelona, ??the new company will manage the port’s future intermodal terminal, as well as the integrated railway logistics node of the Can Tunis and La Llagosta intermodal terminals and will become a shareholder in the future railway motorway terminal. The integration of all these elements under a single command aims to expand the focus beyond the facilities strictly limited to the port and give a boost to rail freight transport throughout the Mediterranean axis and its area of ??influence. This also includes international transport on which the first steps began to be taken a few months ago.
This joint vision of the different pieces existing in the metropolitan area of ??the Catalan capital and with the participation of the two partners also seeks to promote synergies, achieve more efficient management of resources and optimize the investments made in the different infrastructures. “It is a relevant milestone in moving from collaboration between institutions to cooperation and co-responsibility in railway management,” the Port of Barcelona highlights the formula implemented, a pioneer in this field.
One of the primary roles of this new figure will be to act as an interlocutor with the different railway operators that transport goods and the railway terminals. At an operational level, it will be housed in the existing Barcelona Railway Port Management Center (CFGB) to plan and coordinate the provision of services between the port terminals and the existing terminal in Can Tunis.
The port’s future intermodal terminal with its four lanes, two cranes and a container area will be built and operated by the new company for 50 years under a public domain concession regime. For the same period of time, the Llagosta terminal is leased, where 25 million euros will be invested to transform the facilities and adapt them to the new requirements.
The creation of Train Port Barcelona gives shape to what was agreed in the collaboration protocol signed in October 2020 to promote the construction of new road and rail accesses by the Ministry of Transport (at that time, Development), the Generalitat, Adif, State Ports and the Port of Barcelona. The president of the new company falls on José Alberto Carbonell, general director of the port of Barcelona.
The signing of its constitution is one of the most relevant steps after the drafting projects for the works were put out to tender last fall, a process that will take two years. Meanwhile, the Ministry’s intention is to start the previous works to consolidate the land and divert affected services throughout this year.