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AVE

\n
\nAVE trainset for Madrid-Sevilla
AVE, short for Alta Velocidad Española (lit. "Spanish High Speed" but also "bird" in Spanish) can achieve speeds of up to 300 km/h on dedicated track. Three different corporations have made or will make train sets that will run on this network: Spanish firm Talgo, French firm Alstom (makers of the TGV), and German firm Siemens which makes the ICE high speed trainsets for Germany. Unlike the rest of the Spanish broad gauge network, the AVE uses European standard gauge, permitting direct connections outside Spain in the future. All AVE trains are operated by RENFE (Spanish State Railways). It is however being studied to give rights to private companies for running several lines which are under construction or in the planning process.

Table of contents
1 History and extensions
2 Lines
3 External links

History and extensions

\nThe AVE started running between Madrid and Seville on\nApril 21, 1992, a distance of 471 km. Construction for\na high-speed track connecting Madrid and Barcelona is under way, with the first section from Madrid to Lleida opened on October 11, 2003 and remainder currently planned for 2007 (current forecast is that it will reach Tarragona by 2006). When completed, the Madrid-Barcelona line will be the world's fastest in commercial operation with trains reaching a top speed of 350 km/h, traveling the 600 kilometers between the two cities in just 2.5 hours. Construction of a segment to Valladolid has started, and there are firm plans for extending the system to Valencia, Alicante and eventually to interconnect with the French TGV network as well. The Spanish government has an ambitious plan to have 7000 km of high speed rail operational by the end of the decade. The overall goal is to have all provincial cities be at maximum only four hours away from Madrid, and at maximum 6 hours 30 minutes away from Barcelona.

Lines

\nCurrently, four lines make up the AVE system: In Madrid, AVE operates out of the Atocha train station.

External links

\n* AVE (Renfe) (in Spanish)\n* AVE fan pages \n\n\n\n\n

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