Nine AVE services per day and will operate in each direction between Madrid and Alicante, cutting the journey time by 50 minutes to 2h 20min.
Renfe will use class 100 and 112 AVE trains, increasing capacity over existing services by 40% or 6300 seats per day, with trains stopping at Cuenca, Albacete and Villena. Tourist class tickets will be sold at a full fare of €64.90, with a 50% discount offer for the first week of operation, which is valid until June 25.
The line is a 239km branch off the Madrid – Valencia high-speed line, and the initial 74km section as far as Albacete was inaugurated in December 2010.
Although this dedicated high-speed line has been designed and built for a maximum commercial speed of 300km/h, services on the newest section will be limited to 200km/h until ERTMS testing is completed. Journey times will be further reduced when the system is fully operational.
