Monday, December 31, 2018

León to Barcelona

Last day of 2018 I'm spending by taking different trains between León and Barcelona
Plaza Mayor in the morning

Catedral de León
I have some time before my first train, so I will have a chance to see León during the daylight

Basílica de San Isidoro
Las Cabezadas monument





City hall



Catedral in the sunlight



Padre e Hijo


In the morning it is time for the delivery to local restaurants and pubs




Statue of Antoni Gaudi
Monument of Angel Barja


Parroquia de San Marcelo


"La Negrilla" statue


Lions in León

The old station in León


Not sure what's going on here
The new, temporary station on the other side
Security control before boarding the platforms

High speed line between Valladolid and León opened in 2015. There are 2 daily direct AVE services between Madrid and León taking 2h10min, to be compared with almost 5h when taking Media Distancia train.
Security control means X-ray for the luggage
The temporary station is a terminus. Here are the standard gauge tracks
This New Year's Ever the first train from León is at 10:44

Two Class 252 locomotives

Alvia Class 130 is arriving from Gijon






All seats (except the ones in the front) are facing the direction of the train

Iberian gauge railway and Standard gauge
This Alvia Class 130 can be used on both gauges, but it is using the Iberian gauge railway here

Complimentary drink

Sahagun
High speed line runs in parallel here

Villada station. My Alvia train do not stop here, but some other trains does - like R.Expres and Intercity




Grijota

At Palencia the two railways are connecting again, as well as the line from Santander


This Alvia train continues to Barcelona - but I'm taking another route



The left track is Iberian gauge, the right one is the standard gauge

Estación del Norte in Palencia

Palencia is about twice as small as León in terms of population
Calle Antonio Maura



Plaza Mayor
City hall



Diputación Provincial de Palencia
Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Calle
Familiar Swedish town names here


Iglesia de San Miguel
Carrión river

Stork



I'm back at the station
Jardinillos de la Estación


R.Expres train from Santander to Valladolid
Class 470
The trip Palencia-Valladolid takes 45min with the Iberian gauge railway, and 25min with High speed railway, which I'm going to use shorly

AV City is a new concept from Renfe, which means that the trains are using same route as AVE high speed trains, but with a reduced train tickets and less comfort. This AV City service is between León and Madrid.
Class 121 is used for this AV City service
Only Turista class on this train




Iberian gauge line

The Venta de Baños Triangle, which will facilitate all direct traffic connections that are possible between Valladolid, Palencia, León and Burgos.
Venta de Baños


25 min later I'm in Valladolid
Madrid-Valladolid high speed line opened in 2007

Valladolid Campo Grande station opened in 1856


Class 114 Avant train





Classes 121 and 114







I'm changing trains here once again in order to ride with a Class 114 for the remaining trip to Madrid on this line.
Avant service between Valladolid and Madrid

Avant train has also just Turista class


Vending machine on board
















Segovia



There is only 1 stop between Valladolid and Madrid in Segovia




Entering the 28,4km long Guadarrama Tunnel - the longest in Spain


Approaching Madrid





Cuatro Torres Business Area

Gauge changer facility


Madrid Chamartin station




Renfe Class 334



Renfe Class 446
I'm taking Cercanias train between Chamartin and Atocha stations in Madrid with a stop in the main square


Puerta del Sol
The main place in Spain to celebrate the New Year
Carlos III





Back to the Cercanias station


There is a connection between Chamartin and Atocha for long distance trains - at the moment only for Iberian gauge
These trains do not stop at the Cercanias stations



Another long distance train




My last train to Barcelona will be this AVE Class 103





Leaving Madrid



Some snacks and a drink included in 1st class ticket










Another one



Cheers!



No comments:

Post a Comment