Finally, the report for el soterramiento -the building of an underground tunnel from the outskirts of the city to the railway station- has come in. And even the mayor admits it’s a shock.
244 million euros for 2,5 Km of tunnel. That’s the second most expensive tunnel ever built in Spain, after Santander’s. It seems that a similar tunnel in Cádiz cost just 55 million. The original budget was 100 million, which most people considered excessive.
No explanation given as to why it’s so expensive. Someone from a neighbourhood association has accused the Ministry of upping the price in order to have an excuse to not continue with the project.
It seems the project still doesn’t contemplate the branch line down to the port, which has been requested a number of times.
The mayor insists the project will continue, and has gone off to look for some more loose change down the back of the sofa.