Spain’s high-speed network reaches Galicia

Now the journey can be made in two hours and 15 minutes thanks to Galicia’s first connection with Spain’s enviable high-speed railway network. Next year the line should be extended to Santiago, the regional capital, and A Coruña, its biggest city. “Cinderella can now travel in a bigger and more comfortable car,” said Ourense’s mayor, Gonzalo Pérez Jácome, using his nickname for his city, which he says is treated like an unloved stepchild.

Spaniards have long been leaving poorer rural areas for better opportunities in richer cities. Politicians in rural areas lament this. But it is not obvious that pricey infrastructure will do much to curb it. Mr Jácome notes that Zamora, until recently the high-speed trains’ last stop en route to Galicia, has gained weekend tourists but continued to lose population since their arrival in 2015.

In any case, Galicia has been doing well. It was once a byword for isolation and poverty, “the end of the world”, as the name of its westernmost point, Cape Finisterre, indicates. So many Galicians emigrated thatper person, 66% of the national average in 1955, is now 92% of it. Ángel de la Fuente of, an economic think-tank, points to fish processing, carmaking and clothing and reasonably business-friendly politics, though he says a single cause of its catch-up is hard to identify.

Another fix for Spain’s regional disparities has been proposed by the Socialist-led national government: opening new state bodies outside the capital. Many bigwigs in the conservative People’s Party say this would be pointless. Galicia’s leader, the’s moderate Alberto Nuñez Feijóo, has a warmer reaction, noting that it makes little sense to put the country’s Institute of Oceanography in landlocked Madrid.

This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline "To the end of the earth"

until a decade or two ago? Not possible being more precise?

United Kingdom Latest News, United Kingdom Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

Italian mafia fugitive spotted on GOOGLE MAPS in Spain after 20 yearsGioacchino Gammino, one of Italy's most wanted mobsters who has been convicted of murder, fled from a prison in Rome in 2002 and was living under the radar in Galapagar, a town north of Madrid.
Source: Daily Mail Online - 🏆 135. / 51 Read more »

Cameron Diaz and Benji Madden celebrate seventh wedding anniversaryThe Good Charlotte guitarist, 42, took to Instagram with a kind message as he and the There's Something About Mary actress, 49, reached the marital milestone. WTF She's married to that guy lol
Source: DailyMailCeleb - 🏆 1. / 99 Read more »

Businesses fear rising inflation could threaten economic recoveryWith the Bank of England predicting the rate of inflation will hit 6% in the spring, businesses have expressed fears over its impact on their post-Covid recovery. heliaebrahimi reports. heliaebrahimi Rising interest rates are the biggest problem for any economic recovery. Most people have mortgages, business’ have loans and overdrafts, the Bank of England need to wake up to reality and keep interest rates low until a sustained recovery has been achieved. bankofengland heliaebrahimi Johnson’s Britain heliaebrahimi How much the interests rate will raise then?
Source: Channel4News - 🏆 27. / 68 Read more »

The populist in Boris Johnson can see off FarageJohnson knows how to squeeze Farage out of politics, and it would be rash to assume he can’t and won’t do it again by reaching into the populist toolkit | ✍️ Jameskirkup
Source: The Times - 🏆 71. / 59 Read more »

Working 'near' home: The best co-working spaces in the UKWORKING from home has its upsides, but you might be getting sick of the lack of socialising, networking and general human interaction during the working day. Express.co.uk has rounded up the best co-working spaces in the UK for you to try.
Source: Daily Express - 🏆 26. / 68 Read more »