On the 19.12.2018 the largest TBM currently working in Spain ended the excavation of the 3048 m tunnel of the new railway to Terminal T1 of the Barcelona-El Prat airport. The first phase of the project, a EUR305 million investment by SEITT (Sociedad Estatal de Infraestructuras del Transporte Terrestre), includes the construction of infrastructure works.

The second phase, which is a EUR95 million investment, includes the superstructure, the equipment, the stations’ architecture and a connection to the conventional-gauge Barcelona-Tarragona line. They are currently completing the administrative procedures prior to the tender being released.

The new double-track railway infrastructure will start construction at the Barcelona-Tarragona line and finish at Terminal 1. The rail will connect with the R2 line from Rodalies and it will also have an intermediate station at Terminal T2 connecting both terminals with Barcelona. This means it will take just 19 minutes to travel between Barcelona-Sants station and the T1 terminal and it will be used by 7 to 9 million passengers a year.

The new route, which is 4510 m long, includes a 3385 m tunnel (maximum depth 25.8 m and diameter 10.60 m), 3048 m of which - including the passage through the multimodal T2 station - were driven by the TBM EPB.

To date, the progress of Phase 1 works has reached 87%. The next phase includes  the disassembly of the TBM, the completion of the connection with the future T1 station and the shafts, the completion of the T2 station and three emergency exits. The test phase for rail access to terminal T1 should begin in 2021. For further information please visit http://prensa.adif.es/ade/u08/GAP/Prensa.nsf/Vo000A/98F0D07E1B2C5691C1258368003E1374?Opendocument. 02/19.