This situation is prompting rapid planning and executing of the necessary work, with the collaboration of all the pertinent institutions. The transfer of the management of the Rodalies de RENFE service to the Generalitat, due to take place in January of next year, and the deployment of the Statute, which has represented a record investment of the state in infrastructures in Catalonia, are two clear examples of this.
Railway network | M€ | |
---|---|---|
By the Spanish State | Regional and Outskirts | 2.300 |
By the Spanish State | TGV | 2.350 |
By the Generalitat | Line 9 | 4.000 |
By the Generalitat | Other projects | 1.100 |
By the Generalitat | Future projects | 1.300 |
Roads | M€ |
---|---|
By the Spanish State | 3.600 |
By the Generalitat | 3.800 |
Apart form the large road networks, in order to achieve a quality transport system the Government is carrying out approximately one hundred projects in order to improve, adapt and maintain the local and regional road network in Catalonia. The investment is expected to cost 3,800 million euros. The Transversal arterial road, the Diagonal arterial road and the Llobregat arterial road will act as a backbone in the centre of Catalonia once they have been converted into four-lane highways. In addition, 35 projects are planned or are under construction for conversion into four-lane highways and improvements on State roads, (N-260, N-145, N-230, N-240, N-420, N-340, N-II, B- 40), which will represent a further investment of 3,600 million euros.
The objective of the ambitious number of investment projects that the Government is currently carrying out is so that the inhabitants of Catalonia may travel more freely around the country. The projects include the construction of a new underground line, L9 which will connect Badalona with Prat airport, at a cost of over 4,000 million euros, and the extension of the stretch of the Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat to Terrassa and Sabadell in order for it to become an underground metro system.
The Spanish State is currently carrying out 21 important construction projects in Catalonia, in outskirts and regional networks as well as freight transport, with an investment of approximately 2,300 million euros. Furthermore, construction on the TGV from Tarragona to Barcelona and to France is under way. The train is due to arrive in Barcelona before the end of the year. In parallel with these events, in the near future, Catalonia will have two new railway lines, the Transversal Railway arterial road and the Línia Orbital, which will improve the balance of train services in the country and will activate mobility in the metropolitan area.
The most modern and newest form of public transport in the area of Barcelona, the tram, has also extended its route during the last few months. After the launch of the latest extensions, Baix Llobregat and the north Barcelonès are connected in the centre of Barcelona by the Trambaix and the Trambesòs. Thanks to this infrastructure, which has been carried out at a cost of 463 million euros, the mobility problems in the most populated areas in the metropolitan area have been solved.
The so-called social facilities, which have a near affect on inhabitants, such as those related to education, social services, culture, safety, justice and sport, have also received an increase in resources allocated to them. Not only is the number increasing and their territorial scope widening, but improvements have especially been made in the quantity and qualifications of the professionals who provide these services.
If we could provide a photo finish of the state of the activities that are being carried out in Catalonia today, we would see that in the last nine months, 1,300 measures have taken place or are taking place, with an investment of approximately 3,100 million euros.
Areas of activity | Work in progress or completed in the last nine months | M€ |
---|---|---|
Total | 1.276 | 3.097,2 |
Justice | 41 | 666.1 |
Police and fire stations | 44 | 224.4 |
Health | 81 | 1,249.4 |
Education | 335 | 646.3 |
Social services | 323 | 127.6 |
Sport | 173 | 75.6 |
Culture | 179 | 107.8 |
The Generalitat has negotiated with the State the largest investment in history in infrastructures in Catalonia for the next seven years —30,815 million euros—, and it has also ensured compensation in the event that this investment is not fulfilled. The historical agreement, reached as a result of the introduction of the new Autonomous Statute, guarantees that Catalonia will be provided with the necessary infrastructures in sectors of such importance as transport, industry, energy, agriculture, commerce, tourism, research and new technologies.
The Statute, passed in summer 2006, establishes that the investment in Catalonia in infrastructures must be proportional to the economic weight it holds within the State. The agreement now reached, which widens the concept of investment in infrastructures agreed last year, finally recognises the deficit in investment received by Catalonia and all the oxygen applied for has now been injected. The agreement also guarantees that the commitment will be fulfilled as from 2007: the 827 million euros pending from last year’s budget will be made up for. In addition to this, during the next seven years any agreed amount which for any reason has not been invested will be transferred directly to the Generalitat.
2007 | |
---|---|
Total investments from the State | 21,335 M€ |
Economic weight of Catalonia within the State | 18.85% |
Total investment in Catalonia | 4,022 M€ |
Total 2007-2013: 30,815 M€*
*Prevision calculated from the expected annual increase of the State Budget.