The Spanish Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility has initiated compulsory purchase proceedings ahead of the construction of the new Soto Sur station in Soto del Real, Madrid, with a tendered budget of £17.6 million.
C-4b extension background
The station will serve the extension of the C-4b commuter rail line from Colmenar Viejo to Soto del Real, a route currently under construction. The line is being reinstated along a roughly 10 km corridor of the former Madrid–Aranda de Duero–Burgos direct railway — the so-called Ferrocarril Directo de Burgos — which has carried no regular passenger traffic along this stretch for over two decades. Series 465 electric multiple units are expected to operate the extended service, initially under the ASFA Digital train protection system.
Heritage building at the heart of the scheme
The project centres on the rehabilitation of the 1955 station building at the former Manzanares–Soto del Real halt, which has been listed as a Bien de Interés Patrimonial (heritage asset). The 412.7 m² two-storey building will be restored to its original appearance and fitted out as a fully accessible modern station, housing a concourse, ticketing facilities, and lavatories. A new 155.8 m² building to the north will accommodate a café.
Station facilities and land take
The wider site will include canopied platforms spanning 80 metres, a 513-space park-and-ride car park, and reinstatement of the existing cycle track. The compulsory purchase order covers 26,488 m² of rural land, with a hearing for the preliminary occupation certificates scheduled for 2 June 2026. The station is expected to open in summer 2027.
Madrid Cercanías masterplan context
Soto Sur forms part of the broader Madrid Cercanías Plan, which encompasses the quadrupling of the Pinar de Las Rozas–Las Matas corridor alongside new stations at Tres Cantos Norte, Parla Norte, and Pinto La Tenería.