In excellent news for skiers who enjoy travelling by train, a new study by the Andorran Chamber of Commerce is proposing a new railway line to Andorran ski resorts via Seu d’Urgell.

Currently it’s only possible to travel to Andorra by road from neighbouring countries. However, the idea of a simple rail connection is attractive as the country believes it would increase accessibility and increase the length of stay, as well as the obvious benefits in terms of reducing emissions and road congestions.

A new airport ‘Andorra – La Seu’ with heliport has already been discussed, but a rail link has been under discussion for a long time, via the two closest Spanish regional capitals and La Seu d’Urgell, as well as the Tour de Carol on the French side.

Train line to link Andorra with Val d’Aran

ANA – Agència de Notícies Andorrana – published a proposal last week to create a train line to connect the Andorran resorts with those of the Val d’Aran.

The proposal would link La Seu d’Urgell y Andorra, with stations in Sant Julià de Lòria, Santa Coloma, Andorra la Vella – which would be renamed the Andorra Pyrenees, Escaldes-Engordany and Encamp.

Proposed connections

Barcelona to Andorra by train in less than 3 hours

The proposed route would start at a fork of the Barcelona-Puigcerdà line at the Urtx-Alp station, where it would follow approximately the route of the road and the Segre valley to La Seu d’Urgell.

It could mean a journey of only 2 hours and 40 minutes from Barcelona to Andorra by train.

The Andorran Chamber of Commerce has been insistent that a new airport is not the only option, and have been working with other specialists in rail travel in Europe to assess the feasibility of a line that connecting Andorra with France and Spain.

Cross-border cooperation required

The section that would link Spain could cost around €220 million euros to connect Puigcerdà and Sant Julià, with the goal of developing a more sustainable public transport network in the Pyrenees than road traffic.

The challenge in this project is that the infrastructure required is more complicated than building an airport, since it requires cross-border cooperation.

However, this is an exciting project that would help reduce emissions and we will do our best to keep you up to date on Ski Flight Free.