• Work is underway on Madrid’s major urban regeneration project, beginning with the construction of the first piles and piers for the railway rail yards to the south of the Madrid-Chamartín-Clara Campoamor train station, which will support the slab of concrete on top of which the huge green area known as Central Park will be built as part of Madrid Nuevo Norte.
• After this initial stage, in 2023 the project will take further steps, drawing up plans to cover over these rail yards completely, and the urban development planning for the Chamartín Station APR.05.10 and the presentation of urban development initiatives for all areas encompassed by Madrid Nuevo Norte.

Madrid, 07 November 2022.

Madrid Nuevo Norte, the most important urban regeneration project in Europe, is underway. Work has begun on the first infrastructure required for the project, with the pilings and foundations that will support the covering over of the railway rail yards located to the south of Madrid-Chamartín-Clara Campoamor station.

After more than 28 years immersed in the planning stage, and having gained final approval in July 2020, Madrid Nuevo Norte is facing a new and definitive milestone as the first urban development work begins, officially launched today at a ceremony attended by the Minister for Transport, Mobility, and the Urban Agenda, Raquel Sánchez, along with Paloma Martín, Madrid’s Regional Councillor for the Environment, Housing, and Agriculture, the President of Adif and Adif AV, María Luisa Domínguez, and the President of CreaMNN, Álvaro Aresti, who unveiled a plaque commemorating this historic event.

Raquel Sánchez, the Minister for Transport, Mobility, and the Urban Agenda emphasised the importance of this act, since Madrid Nuevo Norte is “the most important urban regeneration project in Europe, as befits a European capital, a great project in terms of size and investment, but also significance, since it represents our commitment to a specific type of urban development: to a certain model of city and a model of mobility. Because this government, as we are demonstrating with the policies we are promoting, has an ambitious vision for mobility and a firm commitment to quality public transport.

“This project – she added – is based on a dense and compact city model that will foster urban life. It has come about through the total renovation of Chamartin station, which will be used to structure a new hyperconnected public transport network. And it has been designed to put people front and centre, and to be easily walkable and bikeable”.

In turn, Madrid’s Regional Councillor for the Environment, Housing, and Agriculture noted: “The Region of Madrid plans to invest 39 million euros to give Madrid Nuevo Norte two new primary schools and one secondary school, with construction beginning in 2025, which will offer 3,200 places in total”. She also highlighted the contributions made by two major public corporations in the Region of Madrid – Metro and Canal de Isabel II – which will be developing some of the most important core infrastructures for Madrid Nuevo Norte, noting that “between 2024 and 2027, Canal de Isabel II will be involved with six hydraulic installation projects and the laying of 12 km of pipelines, with an investment of 80 million euros, and Metro de Madrid will build three new stations with an investment of 290 million euros”.

Álvaro Aresti, President of Crea Madrid Nuevo Norte, has defined these starting works as “the best show of the transformative power offered by Madrid Nuevo Norte, which will turn the space currently occupied by this railway infrastructure into a destination and a space for people to come together and enjoy. And all without interfering with its operational capacity or in the crucial service that the railway offers citizens”.

Coordinated works to minimise the impact on rail services

These first works involve constructing the first foundation piles and concrete piers that will form part of the structure covering over the rail yards to the south of Chamartín-Clara Campoamor station, on top of which the southern section of the Central Park of Madrid Nuevo Norte will be constructed.

This is the first stage in the development works that will affect the two areas of Madrid Nuevo Norte situated to the south of the M-30 ring road: APR 05.10 Chamartín Station and APE 05.31 Chamartín Business Centre. They plan to make the most of the remodelling and extension work being carried out by Adif in the station, so that the two sets of works are coordinated, thereby minimising possible disruption to rail services.

In total, 212,000 square metres of rail yards will be covered over (34,900 m² in the south and 177,015 m² in the north), building a total of 2,407 piles (vertical structures that provide foundations and are located under the surface) and 1,132 piers (vertical structures on the surface, which support the girders for the slab of concrete).

As a result of these initial works, a total of 86 piles have already been installed of the 312 that will be placed in the southern head, and 83 piers of the 214 to be installed in that same area.

The complexity of this action has required all parties to coordinate fully in terms of adapting the work, since it affects key infrastructures for local and national mobility, in another example of the public-private collaboration that is the hallmark of the Madrid Nuevo Norte project.

Next steps

With regard to covering over the tracks, following this initial work, in early 2023 another two important steps will be taken: plans will be drawn up to cover over this whole area, both in the north and south, and the Global Draft Project for area APR 05.10 Chamartín Station will also be drawn up, once the contract is awarded by means of the international architecture competition currently underway.

Furthermore, 2023 looks set to be a key year in the development of the Madrid Nuevo Norte project, since during this year, the urban development initiatives for the different areas should also be formalised, so that the Juntas de Compensación (Owners’ Association) can be set up, and the urban development projects approved.

The urban transformation of Madrid

Madrid Nuevo Norte is the city’s major urban transformation project, a public initiative involving public-private collaboration, launched with maximum institutional, political, and social consensus. Beginning with the complete renewal of Madrid-Chamartín-Clara Campoamor station and the integration of railway land into the city, a city model has been designed that places people at the very heart of urban design, focusing on public transport and green areas, and innovating in terms of sustainability and technology at the service of citizens.

This action covers an area of 2,357,443 m2 with 1,048,535 m² of buildable land earmarked for residential construction and 1,608,778 m2 for tertiary and mixed uses to promote urban activity. This project offers huge potential to promote economic recovery, generating up to 350,000 jobs, creating 10,500 new homes —including 38% run by Madrid City Hall—, and bringing a new iconic image to the capital with a state-of-the-art Business Centre that will raise Madrid’s international profile.