AVE Madrid–Valencia

Madrid to the Mediterranean paella coast in 100 minutes aboard the duck-nosed “Pato”.

Opened in December 2010, this is the quick way from the capital to the Mediterranean: 391 km in as little as 1 h 40, with the duck-billed S-112 “Pato” sets doing much of the work. The line crosses the emptied heart of Castilla–La Mancha, calling at Cuenca’s field-side Fernando Zóbel station below the hanging houses, then drops through the Utiel-Requena wine plateau to the orange coast. Since liberalisation, Ouigo and iryo undercut and out-style each other on the same rails.

Stations

1. 0 kmPuerta de Atocha
2. 188 kmCuenca-Fernando Zóbel
3. 320 kmRequena - Utiel
4. 389 kmValència Joaquín Sorolla

The stations OpenStreetMap lists for this service, in order, with the distance along the line as drawn here. A train may skip some of them.

Along the way

• La Mancha emptiness at 300 km/h
• Cuenca — gateway to the hanging houses
• Utiel-Requena vineyards
• Turia basin descent
• Joaquín Sorolla terminal

How this line was checked

• Line drawn from OpenStreetMap relation 1374671 — the same nodes OpenStreetMap holds for this railway, thinned to within under 25 m of them
• Checked against OpenStreetMap: the whole line lies on real track, a median 6 m from it
• Checked against the running timetable via ÖBB Scotty: our line sits under 100 m from the shape of AVE 5890
• Wikipedia has an article for this line
• See for yourself: open this line on the map with OpenStreetMap's own railway drawn underneath it

Questions and answers

How long is the AVE?

The AVE runs 391 km from Madrid to Valencia.

How long does the AVE take?

The fastest scheduled journey is 1 h 40 min for the 391 km. That is an average of 235 km/h end to end. The line's top service speed is 300 km/h.

Who runs the AVE?

Renfe, Ouigo and iryo, with S-112 “Pato”.

How old is the AVE?

The line has been in service since 2010. That is the year the atlas dates it from: for a modern brand running over an older railway, it is the railway's date, not the brand's.

How often does the AVE run?

Hourly or better across operators.

View on the world railway map →

Read more on Wikipedia ↗