The number of high-speed passengers in
Spain grew by 76 per cent in 2022 compared to the previous year, reaching 23.7
million, according to a new study by the Spanish National Markets and
Competition Commission (CNMC). This post-pandemic increase is credited to
public subsidies and market liberalisation, which led to more operators
entering the Spanish high-speed lines.
In total, rail transportation in Spain saw
an increase of 440 million passengers last year, marking a 36 per cent rise
compared to the 324 million passengers transported in 2021. During that year
the covid-19 pandemic was not yet over, leading the passenger number to be 14
per cent lower than the figures observed in 2019 before the outbreak.
Out of the 440 million total passengers, a
significant 85 per cent made use of the Cercanías commuter train services. The
implementation of government subsidies helped drive this passenger growth,
according to the CNMC. Notably, the Cercanías trains experienced a remarkable
31 per cent surge in passengers compared to 2021, after the Spanish Ministry of
Finance began offering free multi-trip tickets in July 2022 (a scheme which has
been extended until December 2023). Medium-distance trains, also operating free
of charge, exceeded pre-pandemic figures by carrying nearly 26 million
passengers, reflecting a 68 per cent increase from 2021.
High-speed medium-distance trains, catering
to recurrent users with a 50 per cent discount, saw a noteworthy 90 per cent
rise in passengers from 2021, with only a slight 3.5 per cent dip compared to
2019’s numbers, amounting to 8.5 million passengers. Long-distance trains
contributed to this growth as well, accommodating 9.5 million passengers, a
notable 45 per cent surge from the previous year.
Trains over planes on the Barcelona –
Madrid corridor
The route between the country’s two main
cities, Madrid and Barcelona, has been open to competition since December 2020,
states the CNMC. It was not until May 2021 however that Ouigo, a subsidiary of
the French SNCF, began operating on the line, and a month later Spanish state
operator Renfe launched its low-cost service, Avlo to compete, in addition to
its existing AVE high-speed trains. In November 2022, third operator Iryo
joined the tracks on the route, after its inaugural journey on Madrid –
Valencia several days earlier. The Madrid-Barcelona high-speed line has seen
the best recovery from the Covid-19 crisis, registering 5.6 million passengers
back in 2021.
In 2021, amidst the ongoing process of rail
liberalisation, the portion of travellers opting for air travel along the
Madrid-Barcelona route declined to 24.2 per cent. This marks a notable shift
from preceding years when the percentage exceeded 35 per cent, according to
details provided in the recently released Rail Sector Report 2021 by the CNMC.
Impressively, on the Madrid-Barcelona
route, 78.3 per cent of passengers (or four out of five) chose the train, of
which 26.4 per cent opted for Ouigo. Also, the entry of the new operator has
not meant a drop in passengers for Renfe, which in addition to increasing the
number of passengers, reached a share of 80.9 per cent, to 10.2 million
passengers in the second quarter of 2022. As such, in 2022, Spain’s railway
sector witnessed a transformation due to new operators entering the scene,
boosting rail travel over aviation.
