While the Mediterranean corridor is being built, Madrid’s strength remains unshaken. The destination that all territories long to connect with and which, in the case of Castellón, is only possible by bus or car and takes more than 4 hours of travel. That is why the Generalitat Valenciana announced yesterday that Castellón Airport (Aerocas) will “soon” put out to tender the drafting by a company of a technical report justifying the declaration of the Castellón-Madrid route as a Public Service Obligation (PSO).
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Why? Because the Generalitat Valenciana considers that this route meets the parameters required for a PSO, as it would serve “a peripheral province that does not have a transport alternative that meets the necessary conditions.” Likewise, the Valencian government considers that the air connection with the capital of Spain is “essential for the economic and social development of the territory.”
For its appeal before the Directorate General of Civil Aviation of the Ministry of Transport, the report must analyze issues such as demand, existing transport alternatives, and the need for the air service, as well as define the minimum operating conditions of the route and estimate its economic viability, including the necessary compensation. For the general director of Aerocas, Raquel París, the establishment of a PSO for the Castellón-Madrid line is “the appropriate tool to provide coverage, guarantee continuity, and improve the services of a route that is fundamental for the connectivity of the province.”
The director of Aerocas considers the route “fundamental for the connectivity of the province”
The creation of this new line would provide an alternative for Castellón passengers who choose the AVE Valencia-Madrid route as a possible journey, a successful line that has more than 36 million passengers, according to Renfe data from the end of the year. Valencia is an alternative on the Castellón-Madrid route due to its proximity by car and its connection via Cercanías (line C-6, from Valencia Nord to Castelló de la Plana), although the high traffic density on the Mediterranean highway and delays on the railway line are handicaps to consider for users.
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Wednesday, May 6
El Altet hosts the presentation of new Aena investments in the Comunitat
Next Wednesday, May 6, the assembly of the hotel employers’ association Hosbec will be held at Alicante-Elche Miguel Hernández Airport and will feature the intervention of the Government’s deputy delegate in Alicante, Manuel Pineda Cuenca. During the event, the investment plan for the Alicante and Valencia airports will be presented by their respective directors, Laura Navarro Villanueva and Antonio García Aparicio. The day will be presided over by the Valencian president, Juanfran Pérez Llorca, who from his government demands the central government to expand both infrastructures.
If the Valencian government’s proposal goes ahead, Castellón airport would have a service already enjoyed by other Spanish aerodromes, such as the Melilla-Almería, Melilla-Granada, and Melilla-Seville routes; the Badajoz-Madrid and Badajoz-Barcelona connections, Menorca-Madrid in winter due to low demand, as well as the InterBalear and InterCanary PSOs that guarantee the connectivity of both archipelagos with the Iberian Peninsula. The last region to incorporate this service was Extremadura, which since 2018 has had the two connections to Madrid and Barcelona, a service operated by the Valencian company Air Nostrum with a minimum offer of 54,000 seats per year to Madrid and 11 weekly round trips; and four weekly round trips between Badajoz and Barcelona, with a minimum offer of 20,000 seats.
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