Electric trains in Portugal

Cascais, North and Sintra lines.

As CP prepares to operate high-speed services, and almost 100 years after the electrification of the Cascais Line, we also celebrate the 69th anniversary of the start of electrification on CP’s other lines.

On 28 April 1957, the section of the North Line between Lisbon-Santa Apolónia and Carregado, and the Sintra Line, were inaugurated in a ceremony forming part of the celebrations for the Centenary of the Railway in Portugal.

However, ever since Werner Siemens presented the first electric locomotive in 1879, the new traction system has been continuously refined. Since the early 20th century, the idea of developing the Estoril coast, modelled on the French “Côte d’Azur”, was underpinned by the electrification stipulated in the lease agreement for the Cascais Line to the Estoril Company, which was implemented in 1926 using a 1500-volt direct current system.

Although electrification had been under consideration since the mid-1920s, in order to implement the plan to modernise the CP lines, it was necessary to overcome, amongst other things, the obstacles posed by the economic crisis and the world war.

Based on the national plan for the construction of hydroelectric dams (whose turbines were built by Sorefame), which harnessed our rivers to produce energy, the so-called ‘white coal’ (*BCP, no. 335), the Specifications for the first phase of electrification were approved by the Board of Directors in 1954, with a power rating of 25,000 volts alternating current, based on the French experience of 1951.

Given that at the time it was considered “that the Portuguese Railways had managed to choose, within the most economical system, the most advantageous and perfect technical solutions”, in 2016 Portugal's infrastructure manager, IP, SA, noted that, as “an area whose technology and expertise are unique to the railway sector and where knowledge is acquired internally” with proper maintenance, “for example on the North Line, there are still components that are fully operational and without limitations, dating back to the very start of the electrification process.”

It also stated “that the catenary installed on the national railway network has its own ‘brand’, which distinguishes it from all others, as all technical specifications, parameters, design, installation, operation and maintenance rules are of internal design”, that is, by the infrastructure manager.

In the 1950s, the scope of electrification covered “the line from Lisbon to Porto, including the respective suburban areas, which account for around 10% of the network’s length and 47% of total traffic”. (*BCP, no. 335)

But “electrification is not just about powering the rolling stock, using electricity to provide the necessary energy; it is also about renewing the track, realigning the routes, removing level crossings, refurbishing stations, implementing new signalling, control and communications systems, re-equipping or establishing new workshops, and, beyond this, electrification also means preparing people and minds for new tasks, new specialisations, new methods, concepts and ideas” (*BCP, no. 335)

With the economic benefits envisaged in 1955, at a rate of 550 escudos paid per tonne of coal compared to the anticipated 20 centavos per kW, the aim was to reduce operating costs and improve service quality.

Following the completion of the electrification of the North Line in 1966, a cornerstone of the national railway network and today a key part of the Atlantic Axis, the “paradigm shift [which] has brought with it a range of benefits, primarily environmental, but also in terms of efficiency, speed and technology, insofar as it supports and enables new operational processes” (IP, SA, 2016) essentially took place from 1996 onwards with the introduction of electric traction to Mangualde in 1999, along the Douro to Cête in 2002, from Porto de Sines to Pego in 2003, with the railway crossing of the Tagus, in 2004 with electrification (and gauge change) to Guimarães, the Braga branch line and connection to Faro, in 2008 on the Siderurgia branch line, in 2010 on the Port of Aveiro branch line, in 2021 in the Minho region as far as Valença and completion in Beira Baixa, in 2025 in the Algarve, already completed as far as Vila Real de Santo António, in addition to the Nova Linha de Évora line currently under construction, which forms part of the Southern International Corridor.

“The ongoing investment [in rail infrastructure], of around €2 billion, with EU funding of between 40% and 85%, enables improvements to suburban and regional connections, as well as long-distance links between the country’s main centres, reducing journey times, enhancing safety and comfort, with social and economic benefits for territorial cohesion.” **

“CP as the national leader in integrated mobility – simple, personal and sustainable”, in its mission to “Connect people and communities, in a sustainable manner and based on rail transport”, has been utilising a large part of the 2,525 km of active track, namely the 1,792 km of electrified track (around 70%), to provide high-quality, comfortable and environmentally sustainable services.

Bibliography:

*CP Bulletin, No. 335, May 1957, 29th year

**https://vr.unit360.pt/165anos_aetf/index.htm (European Year of Rail and 165 Years of the Railway)