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Pérez del Caño García, Silvia.
What if we integrated rail access in a kindfull way with its surroundings?
What if these costly works could be self‐financed with the value of railroad lands?
It would be to square of the circle!
3. The Railway‐City Integration Agreements
As a result of this situation arises the Railway‐City Integration Agreements with the deal of
develop ambitious Urban Redevelopment Projects to create a new centrality around the Railway
Station that increase value of the railway lands become unneeded for railway operation.
In 2002, Integration Agreements began to be signed between three levels of Spain Administrations.
The first city to sign was Zaragoza in March 2002. It was followed by Barcelona, Logroño and
Gijón (2002); Valencia, León, Valladolid and Alicante (2003); Murcia and Cartagena (2006), and
lastly Palencia, Vitoria and Almería (2008 and 2010).
The Integration Agreements served to confirm the interest, to establish the commitments of the
parties, and to estimate the costs of the projects.
The Ministry of Public Works pays the costs of the High Speed arrival and yields their lands,
the City Council design and deliver the Urban Planning and also yield their urban rights,
the Autonomous Communities approve the Urban Planning and contributing to Railway‐City
integration works.
Finally, the capital gain of the plots, after their conversion, regeneration and valorization,
would help to finance the necessary and high investments for the railroad and the city.
All Administrations are essential to carry out the process of urban regeneration, and all of
them obtain benefits of it. The owner of lands is the Railway Infrastructure Administrator
(Adif) which achieve to upgrade its facilities and the City Council gain quality urban space for
the citizens. But this transformation has a high cost and all actors must cooperate and work
together within one overarching, shared vision to achieve the common goal.
Rendering of Urban Planning solution. New urban district proposed for Zaragoza
280 360.revista de alta velocidad