Renfe counting down to new high-speed connections
Renfe will launch a new low-cost Avlo high-speed service later this month between Madrid and the coastal city of Alicante. From March 27 onwards, travel time between the two urban centres will be reduced to 2.5 hours. In June, additional services to southern cities will be launched.
Renfe has four daily circulations planned between Madrid and Alicante for a total of 1,436 seats per day. All four services will call at Albacete. Two of those trains, one in each direction, will also call at the stations of Cuenca Fernando Zóbel and Villena Alta Velocidad. A low-cost service, prices start at 7 euros for the Avlo trains. This excludes items such as seat selection and additional luggage. Departures from Madrid are at 07:00 o’clock in the morning and at 17:00 in the afternoon. Trains in the opposite direction leave at 11:45 and 21:00, respectively.
The new Avlo low-cost service in March is the first of several as in June Renfe also aims to run trains from Madrid to Sevilla and Malaga, opening up what it calls a southern corridor. The Avlo trains will call at all stations along the lines. While the schedule has yet to be finalised, there will two services between Madrid and Sevilla (one in each direction) and another two between Madrid and Malaga.
Renfe’s Avlo service is the national operator’s weapon in the open-access competition battle with the likes of SNCF’s Ouigo España and Trenitalia’s Iryo. The latter company also offer connections from Madrid to cities such as Barcelona, Sevilla and Alicante. The offer of Ouigo services is still ‘limited’ to Barcelona, Valencia, Zaragoza and Tarragona.
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