Protest announcements follow one another. The Alicante society responds unanimously against the possibility contemplated by ADIF of using abandoned tracks that the state railway manager has kept unused for 40 years to park trains for as long as necessary to carry out works on the Mediterranean Corridor.
They are the residents of the area, the neighborhoods of San Gabriel and Benalúa Sur, where, twenty years late, the city begins to make visible what was called the 'golden mile' of Alicante, where these days some real estate developments of high standard, expensive apartments with sea views and a pool on the terrace, who have been fighting for years against various projects of the central government that clash with the will of the residents.
The neighborhood has fought, often with little support and almost always with minimal political response, against pollution from the unloading of bulk at the port docks, against the construction of large cement silos, the implementation of a biodiesel plant and in favor of removing a beach of useless roads that prevents access to an important green area, the Parque del Mar, and its projected expansion.
In a response to a question formulated at the request of the residents by the Ombudsman, Ángel Gabilondo, the ADIF technicians admit that the possibility of using these tracks as train sidings is one of those being considered. The idea already caused a great scandal when it was known for the first time, and the fact that, despite the unanimity against it by the municipal political forces, the ministry has not ruled it out, led the mayor Luis Barcala and all the forces of the opposition to show their complete rejection.
Yesterday the Association of Real Estate Developers of the Province of Alicante joined the protest, which considers this project "a true nonsense that will seriously condition and hinder the urban development of the city."
The general secretary of Provia, Jesualdo Ros, stressed that the plan goes against the socioeconomic interests of the city of Alicante and its inhabitants. "It is incomprehensible and unacceptable that it is intended to locate this train park in the downtown area of the urban center of Alicante, where high-quality buildings are currently being developed, and which is a strategic point for the future development of this city."
Ros recalled that in this area of the city the Alicante City Council plans to act on emblematic buildings and value the flour mills, actions that "would be seriously harmed and compromised if this train parking project finally goes ahead". For this reason, Provia demands that ADIF managers immediately withdraw this project and look for other alternatives.
Likewise, the association regrets that the few investments that come to the province of Alicante by the Government of Spain do not contribute any value, and that they also cause socioeconomic, landscape and environmental damage to this city.
The Association of Real Estate Developers of the Province of Alicante also claims the need to execute the Torrellano bypass, thus addressing a historical claim that would allow the removal of railway barriers on the south coast of the city.
The Business Union of the Province of Alicante (UEPAL) also expressed its rejection of the project. “We support the demands made by the Alicante City Council to flatly reject this train parking project in an area of expansion of the city such as the one next to Casa Mediterráneo. The city and province of Alicante have other railway priorities that we hope will be addressed and we do not understand the need to locate this car park in a strategic place such as the southern access to the city”, said its president, César Quintanilla.
