FGC tests new rail line to Barcelona-El Prat Airport

FGC's "Línia RA" is a new roughly 20 km rail line between Sant Andreu and Barcelona-El Prat Airport with ten stations (including Sagrera, El Clot, Passeig de Gràcia, Sants, Bellvitge, and Terminals T2/T1), running on existing infrastructure in Iberian gauge. Journey time from the city centre to Terminal 1 is expected to be about 20 minutes; the first Alstom-built train was unveiled in late 2025 and has since been undergoing testing. Service launch is planned for late 2026/early 2027 according to the source; no specific investment figure is given. Update (10 Jul 2026): FGC plans to open the future R-Aeroport in the first half of 2027 (the end of the half-year, 30 June 2027, is used as the date); the line is to be 22.7 km long with nine stations from Sant Andreu to terminals T-2 and T-1, running every 15 minutes with a journey of just over 20 minutes between Passeig de Gràcia and Terminal 1. According to FGC the ten Alstom trains are still being built, and on 30 June 2026 FGC advertised 42 driver posts for the line through its subsidiary FGC Mobilitat. The rollout of the Alstom Coradia S 311 had been presented in late October 2025, when service was expected from early 2027 (LOK Report, 10 Jul 2026 and 31 Oct 2025). Merged (7 Oct 2026): The separately recorded entry a995bf8c on the airport rail link has been folded into this one — the R-Aeroport runs over the new branch of roughly 5 km built by Spain's transport ministry to terminals T2 and T1 (3Cat, October 2025). The section is 5.2 km long, 4.3 km of it in tunnel, and branches off the Barcelona–Vilanova line; total investment exceeds EUR 400 million (Railway Technology).