Page 342 - 360.revista de Alta Velocidad - Nº 6

Grindlay, Alejandro Luis. Huertas-Fernández, Miguel. Molero-Melgarejo, F. Emilio.

within one hour’s HSR travel time (200 Km) from the centre of metropolises” (Ureña et al.,
2012, pp. 141-161).
In connection with the above mentioned similar processes can be anticipated in this case
according to the foreseen changes in accessibility, as following:
- The future rail direct connections between all the Andalusian main cities, and the expected
competitive services, will enable the high mobility that characterized the named current
world “metapolis” (Asher, 2005).
- The fact of the balanced urban system formed by the provincial capitals of Eastern Andalusia
and their equivalent functional level, and given the historical loss of the centrality of
Granada with respect to the coastal capitals, this will predictably give an equilibrated
relationship between them which will imply around an hour or an hour and a half rail travel
time. However the increase of the flows for specific functions and services offered in each
one of them is expected. Thus the greater attractiveness of the metropolitan capital of the
sunny coast and its socio-economic and cultural attractions will become more important.
- In this sense an equilibrated relationship between them, and cooperation policies to reinforce
the present polycentric urban system, would be desirable, and consolidating the regional
metropolitan structures into a complex urban network, as other cases in the world (Boix,
2003; Marull et al., 2015). Thus the conformation of the Southern European’s Polycentric
Metropolis can be predicted, as other mega-city regions in Europe (Hall and Pain, 2009).

- − This reinforcement of the adequate polycentric urban system existing according o the
European and Regional spatial strategy and Plan (EC, 1999; COPT, 2006) also helps to balance
the regional spatial development patterns in the national context (Ureña, 2012).
- As has also been identified in other cases, decentralization opportunities will also appear
in this area, especially in the case of Antequera. The new east-west rail link will reinforce
the existing north-south axis between Cordoba and Malaga and the recovery of its central
regional geographical situation. It would be a great political opportunity for the regional
equilibrium against the prominence of the regional capital.
- The relationship with the regional capital, currently poorly served by public transport (as,
for example, nowadays there is no service to Seville from Granada arriving before 11:30am,
and there is a limited air service from Almeria), will obviously be reinforced as the new
rail travel times will be very competitive as seen in Table 6. However, given the mentioned
equilibrium existing between cities a limited solely metropolitan integration with Seville
can be expected as the considered conformation of the Southern European’s Polycentric
Metropolis.

- The competition between air and future rail services in the direct relationship between
Almeria and Seville -currently with more than 23,000 passengers per year by plane (CFV,
2016)- will be limited as the future train services duration will be more than double that
of current air services (55 min), but if total air travel time is considered including airport
displacements and waiting times, the rail services can be competitive as they will be
relatively similar.
- Due to the political-administrative dependency, the natural tendency is to reinforce the
relationships between the medium cities with their provincial capital, as is seen between
Puente Genil and Cordoba (Ureña et al., 2012), or will probably be in the case of Antequera
and Ronda with Malaga, and Linares with Jaen. However currently there is a lack of
metropolitan integration of Antequera with Malaga by rail because of the 20 Km distant
existing station that will be solved by its renewed station close to its city centre for the new
rail line towards Granada. In the case of Ronda the new rail travel time to Malaga of less
than an hour will increase their reciprocal relationships.

340 360.revista de alta velocidad