The Chamber of Faro and os Town Councils of Huelva and Seville (Spain) came together, this Tuesday, February 13th, to sign an institutional manifesto in which they fight for the construction of a high-speed line (TGV) that connects the Algarve to Andalusia.
The meeting, which took place in Huelva, brought together Rogério Bacalhau, president of the Chamber of Faro, and also Pilar Miranda, mayor of Huelva, and José Luis Sanz, mayor of Seville.
The institutional manifesto, signed by the three, states that the Algarve and Andalusia are «united by historical, commercial and also emotional ties».
The territories “lack a railway infrastructure that allows them to consolidate growth and makes it easier for them to reach potential levels of activity”.
The three mayors defend that the «rail connection between the Algarve and Andalusia, through a high-speed line that connects Faro to Huelva and Seville, would represent a milestone in connectivity between two territories called to be protagonists, and which share the desire to thus integrate into Europe's major railway highways».
This is, moreover, a work «also demanded by businesspeople and social agents from both banks of the Guadiana, a river that unites two sister territories».
The “road infrastructure has improved considerably in recent years”, namely with the construction of the Guadiana International Bridge, but, however, “the railway network does not have cross-border connections, which becomes a disadvantage especially for logistical development of the territory, as well as for the transport of passengers in two areas with an eminent tourist vocation».
Faro, Seville and Huelva argue that this work “must have the political and financial support of the European Union, but must be claimed, defended and promoted from its origins”.
Thus, in this manifesto, the three ask the Governments of Portugal and Spain “to convey to the European Union the need to connect the Algarve to Andalusia through a railway corridor, to defend its inclusion as a priority work in the Trans-European Transport Network and to provide the funds necessary to begin the previous work».
In this session, Rogério Bacalhau, quoted by the newspaper Huelva Informacion, spoke of this work as a «common objective» for the Algarve and Andalusia, arguing that «only together can we increasingly strengthen cross-border relations and cooperation».
The mayor of Faro also highlighted his political and financial support for this work.
“It’s a unique opportunity,” he concluded.
Furthermore, this is a work that has been sought after for years. José Apolinário, president of the Algarve Regional Coordination and Development Commission, has more than once defended the advancement of a TGV between Faro and Seville.
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