FGV resumes TRAM service between Benidorm and the Regional Hospital after track duplication and electrification works

Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat Valenciana (FGV) resumed service on Line 1 of the TRAM between Benidorm station and the La Vila Joiosa Regional Hospital this Tuesday, following track doubling and electrification works carried out on a 6.23-kilometre stretch with an investment of nearly 40 million euros. The mayor of Benidorm, Toni Pérez, participated this morning in the service's launch, along with the president of the Generalitat, Juanfran Pérez Llorca; the Minister of Infrastructure, Vicente Martínez Mus; numerous mayors and councillors from almost all the municipalities of the Marina Baixa region; and regional and provincial deputies. During the event, they toured the newly renovated section of La Creueta station in La Vila Joiosa and were able to see some of the improvements firsthand.

Among the improvements, the mayor highlighted that this project “not only significantly improves Benidorm’s connectivity with such an important piece of infrastructure for our city and the entire Marina Baixa region as the Regional Hospital, but also advances the landscape integration of this infrastructure with El Moralet Park, our great green lung.” Specifically, the extension of the path that runs from the parking lot next to the Beniardá train station creates a healthy route for pedestrians and cyclists, which is also connected to the existing greenway via a footbridge.

Toni Pérez recalled that this project “responds to a demand that we in Benidorm have been making since 2015 and which was only addressed by the Valencian Regional Government starting in 2023,” also emphasizing that “it was completed in a record time” of 16 months. He also expressed his gratitude for “the sensitivity of the Consell and FGV to the demands we have been making from Benidorm to improve the landscape integration of the TRAM line in El Moralet area” and added that “we continue working to move forward with other important projects in the area of ​​mobility and infrastructure,” including the tramization of the section between Beniardá station and the Intermodal.

For his part, the President of the Generalitat, Juanfran Pérez Llorca, highlighted the “significant transformation” in mobility and transport that the Valencian Generalitat has brought about in the Marina Baixa region since 2023. “There was a long-standing demand from all the municipalities in this region to improve and adapt public transport to the needs and population growth, and it is with this government that this has become a reality,” he stated, while also indicating that this project “represents a qualitative leap in connectivity, guaranteeing better access to essential services in the area such as the Hospital, and that the following phases will also include electrification and the widening of the line from Benidorm towards Altea.”

Rehabilitation of railway halts and new infrastructure

Specifically, these works have allowed for the rehabilitation of Cala Finestrat and Terra Mítica train stops, improving their accessibility and facilities, as well as installing an elevator at the Hospital Vila stop, facilitating access to the hospital.

The works carried out have doubled the track at the infrastructure level, a new viaduct has been built over the El Murtal ravine, and the track superstructure and electrification have been completed, in addition to adding new safety installations, railway communications systems, and power substations.

Although train service has been fully restored today, FGV (Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat Valenciana) has reminded passengers that during the 16 months of construction, the public company provided an alternative bus service connecting to the Creueta TRAM stops in La Vila Joiosa and Benidorm.

The head of the Valencian Government has reiterated the Generalitat's commitment to continuing to improve mobility in the La Marina Baixa and La Marina Alta regions. This will be achieved through the expansion and modernisation of the tram service, facilitating access to sustainable and competitive public transport for residents, and the imminent implementation of improvements to the public bus service, ensuring continuous transport between the region's municipalities.

To this end, projects will include the conversion of the section between Avenida de Beniardá in Benidorm and the Intermodal stop next to the bus station into a tramway; the doubling of the track on the L’Albir-Altea section of Line 9; and the electrification of the Benidorm Intermodal-Garganes (Altea) line, with a budget of approximately 30 million euros.

Finally, Pérez Llorca cited this project, as well as the expansion works at Marina Baixa Regional Hospital, as examples of the "transformation that the Generalitat government has been promoting in this region since 2023, just as the citizens asked us to."

Visit to the Town Hall and signing the Book of Honour

Before heading to Beniardá Avenue station to visit the TRAM construction site, the President of the Valencian Generalitat visited Benidorm City Hall, his first official visit since his appointment as the region's top leader on December 2nd. Pérez Llorca was received by Mayor Toni Pérez at the City Hall entrance, along with numerous members of the local government. Among them were regional deputy José Ramón González de Zárate and his colleague Manuel Pérez Fenoll; the Minister of Infrastructure, Vicente Martínez Mus; and the Regional Secretary of Infrastructure and Transport, Javier Sendra.

The Mayor and the President of the Generalitat first went to the Plenary Hall, where a meeting of the Neighbourhood Council was taking place. Pérez Llorca took the opportunity to greet representatives of the various associations. Afterwards, in the Mayor's office, the President of the Generalitat signed Benidorm City Hall's Book of Honour.

“For me, Benidorm is the city of hospitality and coexistence, two hallmarks of Valencian society. Today, as President, I come to assume the Generalitat's commitment to the transformation of Benidorm's future,” he wrote.