News

The Leioa Tram Service will reduce travel time between the UPV campus and the Metro by half

04/03/05 - The introduction of the Leioa Tram Service will connect the Metro Station with the Basque Country University (UPV) Campus in only 12 minutes, compared with the 31 minutes currently required by the bus service or 50 minutes if covered on foot.

This is only one of the many advantages the introduction of this new transport system will bring to the Biscay town of Leioa.

The Head of the Department of Transport and Public Works of the Basque Government, Álvaro Amann, the Mayor of Leioa, Karmelo Sainz de la Maza, and the Vice-Chancellor of the Basque Country University, Juan Ignacio Pérez, have opened an exhibition on the New Project for the Leioa Tram Service at the Kultur Leioa building.

The exhibition will be open for the next few weeks and includes a dozen panels displaying information on the general features of the project and the effects of the tram service in Leioa (stops, route).


FEATURES OF THE PROJECT

The first phase of the new railway infrastructure will be 3,862 metres long and will include a total of nine stops: Metro Station, Udondo Boulevard, two in Sabino Arana Avenue (near Arkupes Square and opposite the Sakonetas Sports Centre); Town Hall, Askarta and the last two inside the UPV Campus.

Each stop will measure 30 metres long and the line on which the trams will run will be 1.0 metres wide. The entire route features a double line.

The new railway infrastructure in Leioa will use a total of five units. Each tram will be 30 metres long and will be capable of carrying 196 passengers (48 sitting and 148 standing).

The units will reach a maximum speed of 30 Km/h. in pedestrian areas, 50 Km/h. in urban areas and 80 Km/h. in intercity sections.

According to the first estimates, it will take approximately 15 minutes to travel between the first and the last stop. The units will run every 5 to 15 minutes, depending on demand. It has been calculated that up to 4,150,000 trips a year will be offered.

The construction of the first phase of the Leioa-UPV Tram Service is planned to take 28 months from the moment work begins and will cost 22,490,000 euros.

The overall project contemplates the future construction of a second phase between the Leioa Metro Station and the Urbinaga Station in Sestao.

It will be 1,807 metres long and have two stops. The tram service will connect with the Metro Line 2 and with RENFE at the Urbinaga Intermodal Station, located in the municipality of Sestao.


ROUTE

The line will be built on the existing road, above Metro Line 1 and next to Leioa Station.
The tram will run along the centre of the future Udondo Boulevard and connect with Sabino Arana Avenue, which will be used by pedestrians, cyclists and trams at the expense of cars.

Then, the tram will cross the two side-paths of the La Avanzada Boulevard, Iparraguirre Avenue, near the Obelisk, and run along the left hand side of Elexalde Street until it passes the Town Hall. At the new roundabout that will be built, the tram changes to the other side of the road.

From the roundabout to the entrance of the University near the Faculty of Fine Arts and the Vice-Chancellor's Office, the tram will run parallel to the BI-2731 road, on the right hand side. Once inside the Leioa university campus, the Via Apia area will be mainly respected.


THE TRAM SERVICE: AN EXAMPLE OF SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORT

The main purpose of this new infrastructure is to provide the town of Leioa and the Laioa Campus University population (about 13,000 people) with an efficient and sustainable transport system.

The benefits generated from implementing a tram service go beyond the direct advantages for the users. It is a modern and fast system that will generate a number of unquestionable benefits:

- The number of traffic accidents will fall.
- Less oxygen will be burnt.
- Less CO2 is produced.
- Pedestrians will recover the use of the streets.
- Costs related to traffic jams (time and money) will be eliminated.
- Noise in the town environment will be reduced.
- It is accessible to all people.


It is an efficient and balanced system that will improve mobility possibilities for all people without endangering the capability of future generations to deal with their own needs.

  
   Communication Cabinet