Type of work

Railways

High-speed Line Embalse Alcantara - Garrovillas

Spain

  • Almonte South - May 13
  • Almonte South - Sept 13
  • Cagancha
  • Santa Ana
  • Santa Ana
  • Villaluengo
  • Almonte South - May 13
  • Almonte South - Sept 13
  • Cagancha
  • Santa Ana
  • Santa Ana
  • Villaluengo

In a joint venture with the Portuguese company, Conduril, FCC is constructing the high-speed platform, Embalse de Alcántara-Garrovillas sub-section of the Talayuela-Cáceres section of the High-speed Line. Madrid-Extremadura.

The works consist of the execution of a new platform for a 6,265.65-metre length of double high-speed track between the municipal terminuses of Garrovillas de Alconetar and Santiago el Campo, both in Cáceres Province. It includes four viaducts as singular elements, with the one crossing the River Almonte being outstanding. The overall works include the execution of two overpasses and a cut and cover tunnel with a transverse section in the form of a dome over the crossing with the Vía de la Plata Roman road.

As a singular structure, the viaduct over the River Almonte is worthy of note, being 996 metres long and crosses the tail of the José María Oriol Reservoir, which is also known as the Alcántara Reservoir that penetrates into the River Almonte and gives it a width exceeding 350 metres at the viaduct site.

The viaduct is divided into three different parts: the two access sections and the central one, which has an octagonal section concrete arch, with variable edge height and a 384 metre width that, once executed, will gain the world record in concrete railway arch-viaducts, exceeding the Dashegguan Bridge in China, with its 336 metres If it is compared only with concrete arch bridges outside railway usage, this would be the third largest span in the world. 

The closest reference in Spain is the Contreras Viaduct, located between the limits of the Cuenca and Valencia provinces, which is one of the Spanish emblematic civil engineering works with a concrete railway arch having a 261-metre span.

The platform works for the Navalmoral de la Mata-Cáceres-Mérida section are co-financed by FEDER.