Catalonia, in Spain, and Andorra have launched the next phase of plans to build the Principality‘s first rail-based public transport system, with both governments tendering studies for the proposed cross-border Tramvalira linking Andorra la Vella with the Spanish town of La Seu d’Urgell.
The Generalitat of Catalonia has issued a tender worth €867,446 for a comprehensive feasibility study of the project. Over the next 12 months, consultants will examine the viability of building a roughly 20-kilometre tram line with at least five stops. The infrastructure is currently estimated to cost around €250 million.
The study, which is up to 65% funded through the Interreg POCTEFA 2021–2027 cross-border cooperation programme, will assess the project’s technical and socio-economic feasibility. It will also compare the tram proposal with alternatives such as bus rapid transit and enhanced bus services, investigate a potential connection to Andorra–La Seu Airport and examine the possibility of building a parallel cycle path through urban areas.
Meanwhile, the Government of Andorra has launched a separate €37,620 strategic study to redesign the country’s bus network so it can be integrated with the future tram. The five-month study will identify stop locations, interchange hubs and park-and-ride facilities, ensuring the bus network complements the proposed infrastructure. Bids for the contract are open until 7 August.
The two studies are being coordinated through a joint steering committee established by the Catalan and Andorran governments to define operational requirements and forecast passenger demand.
Independent railway commentator Jon Worth described the plans as significant for a country that currently has no railway, but stressed that “this would not be a regular train, but a tram.”
He also noted that the project would not fundamentally improve rail access to Andorra for international travellers. “There is no other train in La Seu d’Urgell either,” Worth wrote, pointing out that the railway linking Toulouse, Latour-de-Carol, and Barcelona bypasses Andorra altogether and runs far to the east.
Instead, Worth believes the project is primarily aimed at improving local mobility. “No doubt this tram idea would benefit cross-border commuters who live on the Spanish side of the border and need to work in Andorra,” he said. However, he added that “this is not going to make any meaningful change to rail routes from further afield to Andorra.”
2023 Occitania – Andorra – Catalonia Road Trip
- TOULOUSE-BLAGNAC AIRPORT | Arrival, ID check, car rental and unusually strict security at departure.
- REVIEW | Novotel Toulouse Purpan Aéroport.
- Circuit Andorra.
- HOTEL REVIEW | Eurostars Andorra.
- REVIEW | Caldea hot spring spa and treatments in Andorra la Vella.
- Andorra la Vella & Escaldes–Engordany.
- QUEER ANDORRA | Entre Nous, the only gay bar in the village.
- ANDORRA PARLIAMENT HOUSE | Casa de la Vall.
- Andorra.
- Llívia, Spain’s exclave in France.
- LE TRAIN JAUNE TERRITORY | Mont-Louis and Villefranche-de-Conflent.
- REVIEW | Dali Hôtel Perpignan.
- Perpignan during the Visa pour l’image international photo journalism festival.
- PERPIGNAN | The Palace of the Kings of Majorca or Palais des Rois de Majorque.
- North Catalonia, Northern Catalonia or French Catalonia: Catalan presence in France.
- FRANCE | Carcassonne and its Counts Castle.
- REVIEW | Neméa Appart’Hôtel Toulouse Concorde.
- TOULOUSE | Aeroscopia aerospace ‘Airbus museum’.
- Touring Toulouse.
- 2023 Occitania – Andorra – Catalonia Road Trip.
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- REVIEW | European Sleeper night train.
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- EUROPEAN SLEEPER | Brussels to Barcelona night train to stop in Avignon, Montpellier, Narbonne, and Girona.
- Trenitalia, Deutsche Bahn and ÖBB launch Frecciarossa EuroCity trains linking Berlin, Munich, Milan, Rome and Naples.
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- ÖBB’s new Nightjet sleeper cars accommodate solo travellers with Mini Cabins.
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- REVIEW | Trenitalia Frecciarossa 1000 Paris – Milan in Business Executive.
- RAIL TOUR OF EUROPE | How easy is touring Europe by train?.
- Eight train connections between the Netherlands and Belgium by 2030?.
- REVIEW | ÖBB Nightjet Amsterdam – Zurich night train.
- Nightjet Vienna/Innsbruck to Brussels, or how we got thrown off the train in Aachen.
- Why the expensive ÖBB Nightjet is really not that expensive.
- Ticket Distribution: the failure of railways to sell themselves.
- To use night trains in Portugal and Spain or not?.
- Night trains in Europe.
- Low-cost, long-haul trains to conquer Europe?.
- Fly now before it’s taxed and consider using the train instead.
Channel Tunnel updates
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- #CROSSCHANNELRAIL | Expanding UK-Europe train links most realistically leading to Switzerland.
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- Eurostar unveils €2 billion Alstom ‘Celestia’ fleet of double-decker sustainable trains.
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- Eurostar and St. Pancras Highspeed back major station expansion to double capacity amid growing international demand.
- EUROSTAR | London – Frankfurt, London – Geneva and Amsterdam – Antwerp – Brussels – Geneva from 2030?.
- Alstom wants its double-decker trains to ride through Channel Tunnel.
- London St. Pancras Highspeed pledges financial support for cross-Channel rail services.
- London St Pancras Highspeed and Getlink aspire to to triple train services to France, Belgium and the Netherlands and add services to Germany and Switzerland.
- Heuro wants to operate high speeds trains between Amsterdam, Antwerp, Brussels, Paris and London from 2028.
