Guardian article: https://www.theguardian.com/environ...panish-railway-line-being-devoured-by-the-sea says
/quote/Last stop, underwater: the Spanish railway line being devoured by the sea
The picturesque Maresme line has carried passengers from Barcelona to the coast for more than 170 years – but for how much longer?Seascape: the state of our oceans is
/quote/Last stop, underwater: the Spanish railway line being devoured by the sea
The picturesque Maresme line has carried passengers from Barcelona to the coast for more than 170 years – but for how much longer?Seascape: the state of our oceans is
Last stop, underwater: the Spanish railway line being devoured by the sea
The picturesque Maresme line has carried passengers from Barcelona to the coast for more than 170 years – but for how much longer?
The sea sparkles and laps against the shore of the Maresme coast, north of Barcelona, as the train runs alongside it, passing the few hopeful spring sunbathers and surfers. At points, Spain’s oldest train line runs so close to the shore it feels as if you’re travelling on the sea itself.
Last Sunday, that could well have happened. Heavy waves took a giant bite out of the coast, threatening a section of the track with collapse and forcing the train company to lay on a bus service between La Pineda and Malgrat de Mar.
It wasn’t the first time, and it won’t be the last: coastal erosion and rising sea levels have put the future of the famed Maresme line in jeopardy. In January 2020, storm Gloria battered the line with 3.6-metre (12ft) waves, causing widespread damage and putting several sections out of action. Adif, the company responsible for railway infrastructure, spent €12m (£10m) repairing and shoring up a 1.4-mile (2.2km) stretch of track and replacing a bridge. Smaller beaches were washed away entirely, removing even the thin buffer between trains and waves.