The Movem-nos pel transport públic alliance, which has the support of 39 associations, entities and platforms in the Girona region, has published a manifesto in which it calls for improvements in public transport in the region, especially the train.
They consider that the use of private cars is very high, a situation that they attribute to the “lack of a good public transport network.” They give as an example the Baix Empordà region, “the only one in Catalonia” with more than 100,000 inhabitants without access to the railway. In this area the motorization rate exceeds 900 vehicles per 1,000 inhabitants.
The signatory associations, among which are environmental entities, unions or protest platforms, have prepared a decalogue of proposals to improve mobility in the province.
Among other things, they demand the improvement of the trains, stations, platforms and tracks of the Portbou line and the creation of a cross-border train between Girona and Narbonne. An infrastructure that would pass through 25 municipalities in Gironès, Alt Empordà and the French regions of Languedoc-Roussillon.
They consider that the proposal could go forward with aid from the European Union, which has a program to promote cross-border train services and they argue that initiatives of this type have been promoted successfully in other European countries.
In the document, the administrations are also asked to promote reference stations such as Vilajuïga, in Alt Empordà, which serves all the municipalities close to the Serra de Rodes and Camallera, which serves the residents of l ‘Escla and the south of the region.
They also demand an end to the “railway border”, adjusting the schedules between RENFE and those of the French counterpart company SNCF. The signatories of the document consider it essential to “eliminate the embarrassing barrier posed by poor connections” between trains north and south of the Pyrenees.
Another complaint from the entities, platforms and associations in the area is the change in location of the conventional train station in the center of Figueres, which would move to Vilafant, according to the agreement reached months ago between the City Council and the Ministry of Transport. “It is a mortal sin,” they warn.
“Moving the station away from the center is not a good idea either for mobility or for commerce or for tourism,” they state in the statement. They understand that moving the station away from the place where the majority of Figueres users live will force them to use a private vehicle to reach the new destination.
They also emphasize the need to create a train-tram network in the regions of Girona and demand projects such as the Costa Brava, Olot-Banyoles-Girona or the one linking Lloret and Blanes.
Another complaint from users and these groups is the lack of compatibility between railway schedules and bus schedules. “It is completely unacceptable that we are subsidizing bus services and irrational schedules with public money that are not coordinated between them or with those of the railway,” they argue.
The signatories point out that in 2028 the current concessions to private bus companies will expire and urge public administrations to modify current regulations to end what they consider an “aberrant situation.”
