Basque Y high-speed line under construction amid major delays

The Basque Y (Y vasca) is a roughly 175 km high-speed line linking the three Basque capitals Bilbao, Vitoria-Gasteiz and San Sebastián, running toward France via Irún and toward Burgos/Madrid on a new line; it forms part of the TEN-T Atlantic Corridor. Construction has faced years of significant delays — the original 2023 target for the Vitoria–Bilbao section was missed, and as of 2026 work continues on the "Bergara junction" and the Beasain section, with opening now expected around 2032. Total investment for the core line was estimated at about EUR 4.18 billion in a 2006 agreement, topped up by a EUR 1 billion EIB loan in 2012; the separate new Burgos–Vitoria section (about 94 km) is still in tendering/planning. Update (30 Sep 2026): Adif AV has awarded the third construction section of the Burgos–Vitoria high-speed line, Manzanos–La Puebla de Arganzón (about 7 km, seven viaducts, €241.6 million incl. VAT); four of the seven sections (54.8 km) are now under construction, awarded or out to tender. More than €3 billion is earmarked for the line of nearly 94 km, which is to link the Basque Country to the high-speed network. On the Basque Y itself, Minister Puente said on 6 March 2026 that the rail platform of the entire Y would be finished in under a year; between Vizcaya and Álava 15 sections are complete and four (three of them at the Bergara junction) remain, while track, catenary and safety works are already under way (LOK Report, 30 Sep 2026 and 12 Mar 2026).