The route of the Sa Pobla train that Friends of the Railway want

PalmThe Association of Friends of the Balearic Islands Railway has submitted a document with various allegations regarding the extension of the train from Sa Pobla to Alcudia, presenting route proposals to minimize its landscape impact.

Thus, it has stated that, firstly, the extension must meet the criteria of the Balearic Islands Sectoral Mobility Master Plan (PDSMIB): sustainability, territorial cohesion, emissions reduction, and public service orientation to the resident user. The organization has insisted that it is important "to gather the maximum consensus on this route and types of operation of the resulting railway line." It also insisted that the impacts of the civil works on the new railway route be minimized, using farm thresholds and less intrusive layouts, with criteria of respect for agricultural, landscape, and heritage resources.

Along these lines, they have presented different route options, starting with the section that passes through Sa Pobla. "It should start from the current station and use the space currently marked by the ring roads, especially the Albufera ring road, and run underground in a false tunnel to the exit behind the current cemetery, thus running parallel to the MA-3420, crossing the Siurana canal, and then connecting to the MA-13 to reach the Norte-Alcudia transfer station," they explain. This route, they point out, "minimally affects the plots of land in La Marjal and allows for the construction of the Sa Pobla station opposite Carrer del Mercat, which constitutes the operational civic axis that connects this area of the town."

They then detail the route it should follow to reach Alcudia (as can be seen in the following image). "It is by far the best option to provide travelers not only with a non-invasive route but also with a visibility of our land and the Albufera in particular, that no other option can provide. Reaching the sea, as we have been told, can only be achieved with this route."

Arrival at the Port of Alcudia

For the route that can be seen in the image, the association proposes the tramway between the bays of Alcúdia and Pollença. Avenida del Tucano and its initial station, it explains, would be the strategic hub for converting the train into a tramway. From there, it would head towards the Corneli Atticus road, turn right onto the MA-3460, and at the roundabout, go up towards Alcúdia—still using the tramway—via Carrer de Tramviari, then stop at the current TIB station, thus achieving an intermodal connection. From this point, the route would return to the Ma-3460 roundabout and the route would run directly alongside the Ma-3460 road from Alcúdia to Port d'Alcúdia.

Friends of the Railway also asked the government to incorporate and recognize in the railway expansion project all the heritage elements identified and inventoried in the claims, such as mills, wash houses, and farm sheds, in accordance with the "Catalogue of Historical Heritage of Sa Pobla" and the "Mediterranean Catholic Heritage of Alcudia."