“These studies are being conducted by the government through Infrastructure of Portugal (IP). We clearly signal that this is a priority, and together with the Regional Coordination and Development Commission of the North, we will undertake all necessary studies to assess the best solution for a district that has not had rail access for 33 years,” said Miguel Pinto Luz this morning in Bragança.
The official stated that this is “the first time the state is concretely developing these studies, and there are no other studies.”
The studies concern the feasibility of potentially constructing a high-speed rail link between Porto, Vila Real, Bragança, and the Spanish border, with a possible connection to Sanabria/Zamora.
“The difference is that the Portuguese state, besides the Lisbon-Vigo and Lisbon-Madrid links, has prioritized Porto-Bragança-Zamora, Aveiro-Salamanca, and Huelva-Seville. If we do not conduct studies and projects, there will be no work. We are all tired of promises,” Miguel Pinto Luz emphasized.
The Minister of Infrastructure and Housing spoke on the sidelines of the signing ceremony for the feasibility studies agreement for the Trás-os-Montes high-speed line, held in the municipal theater of Bragança.
The collaboration agreement celebrated today between IP, CCDR-N, and the Intermunicipal Community of the Lands of Trás-os-Montes aims to develop feasibility studies for the potential construction of this railway link. According to the Ministry of Infrastructure and Housing, this agreement fulfils “one of the priorities established for railway investment” by the previous government, framed within the National Railway Plan (PFN), approved in April.
The PFN sets long-term guidelines for investing in a modern, sustainable, and interconnected railway network, capable of supporting new mobility and cargo transport services, ensuring full integration into the trans-European transport networks.
According to the agreement, CCDR-N will undertake activities related to public investment planning and the development of diagnostic studies, with a regional scope, that ensure the development of infrastructure and collective service networks in a territorially coherent and regionally scaled manner, systematically identifying opportunities and critical development factors.
The CIM-TTM is committed to regional development, promoting cohesion among its municipalities and enhancing the territory, including advocating for better transportation links, such as railways, as an essential factor of connectivity and competitiveness.
On the other hand, IP is tasked with the design, project, construction, financing, conservation, operation, upgrading, expansion, and modernization of the national road and rail networks.
The president of CIM-TTM, Pedro Lima, stated that the agreement may demonstrate “a complete Portugal, with no interiors or coastlines, and Trás-os-Montes is at the center of a huge peninsular region, and all this is a matter of justice.”
At the end of the Luso-Spanish summit, held in October in Faro, Luís Montenegro announced that the Porto-Zamora rail link is under study “to be further developed in the coming years,” thus entering the list of investments to be coordinated with Spain.
