From typicallyspanish.com
High speed rail link Seville to Barcelona, bypassing Madrid
By m.p.
Jan 30, 2008 - 9:31 PM
The Development Minister has announced a new AVE high speed project for Málaga and Andalucía: to connect Seville with the Catalan capital Barcelona, without having to enter the central AVE station, Atocha, in Madrid.
Magdalena Álvarez described it as a ‘bypass,’ to connect the line to Barcelona with the high speed rail line in southern Spain. She said it is a project which is still in the early stages which as yet has no definitive timescale.
El Mundo newspaper gave some more information on where the two lines would link up: the Madrid-Seville line at Getafe, 13 kms to the South of central Madrid, and the Madrid-Barcelona line at Vallecas, to the southeast of the capital. The journey time from Seville to Barcelona would be around five hours, they said.
The Minister also announced a date for the high peed ‘Lanzadera’ service between Málaga and Seville, which will reach speeds of up to 250 kph: they will be operational on 20th February, with six services a day in each direction, stopping at Málaga, Antequera, Puente Genil, Córdoba, and Seville. Journey time Málaga-Seville will be cut down to one hour 55 minutes, from the current two hours and a half.
The price will be 33 € for the one-way trip, with discounts for frequent travellers.