The Spanish Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility has initiated the Public Information and administrations hearing procedure for the Information Study to tunnel the tracks of Line 720 Bilbao-Santurce, known as BPT, in Olabeaga (Bilbao). A 30-day period exists for submitting contributions. The line is undergoing transfer to the Basque ETS.
According to its promoters, this variant aims to reduce the urban fracture currently caused by the tracks, which divide the neighbourhood in two, and to release space for future protected housing developments.
The project falls within the Agreement signed in July 2024 between the Ministry, Adif, the Bilbao City Council, and Bilbao Ría 2000. This comes months after Minister Óscar Puente called for caution regarding track tunneling projects.
The chosen solution is the “Phased Alternative A”: in the first phase, the station remains at surface level; in the second phase, it is covered once freight traffic has been transferred to the Southern Railway Variant (Variante Sur Ferroviaria). The Olabeaga station and electrical substation will be relocated, road and pedestrian permeability will be restored, and railway service will be guaranteed during construction. The covering will feature an independent passage between platforms and will allow natural light to enter.
San Nicolás de Olabeaga roads and Camino de la Ventosa will be restored, recovering Camino de Labein to connect the neighbourhood with Avenida Montevideo via a roundabout. The intervention complies with the 2030 Sustainable Mobility Strategy and has a positive environmental impact assessment.