The department led by Óscar Puente has taken a significant step to revive the railway connection, considered strategic for the southwest of the Community of Madrid. The study, with a 24-month execution period, will analyze the feasibility of the connection between Móstoles and Navalcarnero, as well as its integration with future network expansions.
Minister Óscar Puente highlighted the announcement on social media platform X, calling it a "new boost to the extension of the Cercanías network through the southwest of the Community of Madrid." The study will also assess connections to other nearby municipalities and the improvement of public transport integration in the area of influence.
The Ministry considers the C-5 line extension to have "great potential" given the projected growth in Navalcarnero and surrounding towns such as Sevilla la Nueva, Navas del Rey, and Cenicientos. Mobility will be analyzed to connect future stations with other nearby municipalities via public transport.
The contract also includes a functional analysis of the Móstoles-El Soto station, which could become an intermediate terminus. A key objective will be to determine the condition of infrastructures already built and abandoned over a decade ago, evaluating the potential reuse of works originally promoted by the Community of Madrid.
The extension was initially promoted during the regional presidency of Esperanza Aguirre and awarded in 2009 for 369 million euros, planning for 15 kilometers of track and seven stations. However, construction was halted in 2010 by the construction company Cemonasa, a subsidiary of OHL, after investing over 140 million euros. The unfinished infrastructure went through various legal processes until the Community of Madrid definitively renounced resuming it and asked the State to take over the project.
The Community of Madrid formally requested the Ministry in late 2023 to transfer the unfinished railway infrastructures. The Minister of Housing, Transport, and Infrastructure, Jorge Rodrigo, argued at the time that the central government should study the direct execution of the project, as it falls under state competence. Following meetings with local councils and receipt of technical documentation from the Community of Madrid, the Ministry announced in October that it was working on the tender documents for the study now awarded.
For the Navalcarnero City Council, the arrival of Cercanías is a "vital" infrastructure that would directly benefit over 35,000 residents and approximately 200,000 inhabitants of the region.
