Twelve tunnels and seven viaducts: this is how the new section of the Vía Verde de Segura is being refurbished
Topics Diputación de Jaén Villanueva del Arzobispo
The works between Arroyo del Ojanco and Villanueva del Arzobispo, almost 27 kilometres along the old Baeza-Utiel railway, are more than 50% complete and will add three footbridges over the N-322 and the A-3601.
The Camino Natural Vía Verde de Segura will have a continuous route of 74 kilometres between the provinces of Jaén and Albacete when the works on the new section, almost 27 kilometres long, between Arroyo del Ojanco and Villanueva del Arzobispo are finished. According to the Diputación de Jaén, the project is more than 50% complete and has a budget of more than 4.6 million euros, funded by the Ministerio de Agricultura, Pesca y Alimentación.
What is being built
The works, carried out through Tragsa, adapt the old railway route of the Baeza-Utiel line to the parameters of Spain's Caminos Naturales programme, so that it can be used for cycling and hiking. They include improving the surface of the almost 27 kilometres, building slope support and retention elements and refurbishing seven viaducts of the old line.
Twelve tunnels are also being refurbished, and will be fitted with lighting and information signs, and rest areas and three new metal footbridges for pedestrian and cyclist use will be added: two over the N-322 road and a third over the A-3601.
Where it runs
The new section crosses the municipal areas of Arroyo del Ojanco, Beas de Segura, Sorihuela del Guadalimar and Villanueva del Arzobispo, and will become part of the Gran Corredor Verde of the province of Jaén. It is added to the more than 27 kilometres already in service between Arroyo del Ojanco and the border with the province of Albacete, bringing the route in Jaén to 54 kilometres. A further 20 kilometres recovered in Albacete, of the Camino Natural Vía Verde de la Sierra de Alcaraz, also along the Baeza-Utiel route, are added to these.
The visit to the works
The deputy for Agriculture, Livestock, Environment and Climate Change, Isabel Uceda, has visited the works together with the government subdelegate, Manuel Fernández, the mayor of Beas de Segura, José Alberto Rodríguez, and the mayor of Génave, Jaime Aguilera. Uceda has stated that the project "is aimed at bringing this greenway into use, which will serve the municipalities it crosses to diversify their tourism offer".
The government subdelegate has highlighted the technical complexity of rehabilitating a section of the Baeza-Utiel line halted in 1963 and has stated that the project "also allows us to learn about the history of our province". The mayor of Beas de Segura, for his part, has valued that the recovery "can be one more incentive for the municipalities it crosses, not only in terms of sports infrastructure, but also in terms of generating business opportunities".
