Spain’s rail liberalization to boost passenger traffic by 2023
With the liberalisation of rail passenger transport from May 2021, three new operators of High-Speed rail services started operating on the Spanish HS network: OUIGO (SNCF), IRYO (Trenitalia, Air Nostrum and Globalvia) and AVLO (RENFE’s low-cost AVE).
According to the latest CNMC quarterly report (2023Q1), with the entry of the new operators, passengers carried on the MAT-BCN and MCH-VAL routes will grow respectively to 3.1 and 1.1 million passengers in the 1st quarter of 2023, thus increasing in like-for-like terms by 56% and 76% compared to the 1st quarter of 2019.
And these values can still continue to evolve positively as a result of market behavioural changes.
Following other markets in Europe, such as Italy and France, the benefits of liberalisation are also visible in Spain. Operators now face the challenge of generating value for users and their operations.
VTM’s experience and knowledge of rail systems in these geographic markets and the effects of liberalisation will allow us to support our Clients in this sector in transforming the market and adapting to the behavioural patterns of users and their different needs.
Latest news
All news
VTM welcomes Oriol Riba and Alessandra Bernardi
VTM is pleased to announce the addition of two highly experienced professionals, Oriol Riba and Alessandra Bernardi, further strengthening our capabilities across infrastructure advisory and transport modelling. Oriol Riba joins VTM as a Senior Associate Director with more than fourteen years of experience in the infrastructure sector, with a strong focus on transport and additional exposure to energy […]
Welcoming our 2025 joiners
2025 has been a very busy and exciting year at VTM. As our teams have continued to grow during 2025, we are pleased to introduce several colleagues who have joined VTM over the last months. Tiago Costa, Beyza Koç, and Miguel Alves have each become part of our day-to-day work and are already contributing across […]
