News
Night-time closures on the C-3 complicate mobility in southern Madrid
Getting home in southern Madrid will be more complicated over several weekends in June. The Cercanías C-3 line will have night-time closures because of improvement works on the overhead line, an action that will particularly affect users of Getafe Industrial, Pinto and Valdemoro.
The disruption will apply on the weekends of 13 and 14, 20 and 21, and 27 and 28 June. The closure will begin at 23:00 and remain in place until the end of service, a sensitive period for people returning from work, dinner out or a night out in Madrid.
The works will require Pinto station to close at night and rail traffic on the affected section to be interrupted. To prevent passengers being left without an alternative, Renfe will introduce a special bus service between Getafe Industrial, Pinto and Valdemoro.
The buses will have two departures in each direction. From Getafe Industrial, they will leave at 23:25 and 00:25, while from Valdemoro they will leave at 23:10 and 23:55. Users are advised to check timetables before travelling and not leave catching the last train to the last minute.
The closure will have a direct impact on municipalities that depend heavily on Cercanías to connect with Madrid. Pinto and Valdemoro use the C-3 as one of their main routes in and out towards Atocha, Sol, Nuevos Ministerios or Chamartín, so any night-time change requires journeys to be reorganised.
The action forms part of railway infrastructure maintenance and improvement work. In this case, the tasks focus on the overhead line, a key element in the trains' electrical supply and the service's reliability.
The problem for travellers is that the works come at a time of greater night-time activity. June brings together dinners, weekend plans, events and outings that usually end late, precisely when transport alternatives are more limited.
These closures once again highlight the daily dependence on Cercanías. Improvements are necessary, but every disruption is felt in the routine of thousands of people: not only on the journey to work, but also on that night-time return when missing a connection can make the journey home much longer.