Highways and Road Systems

The Region of Murcia is very well linked to most major Spanish cities by highway:  3.5 hours to Madrid, 45 minutes to Alicante, 3 hours to Valencia, 1 hour to Albacete and 2 hours to Granada; within our region, it is possible to travel to or from the main cities, such as Murcia, Cartagena and Lorca, in less than an hour.

The regional highway and freeway system connects Cartagena to Alicante and Murcia to the local markets throughout the region. The Region of Murcia is all linked to the Mediterranean belt by Freeway A-7 which runs north to Valencia, Barcelona and France and Freeway E-15 that skirts the coast of Andalusia all the way to Granada, Seville and Portugal.

Another roadway that has had a great impact on the Region is the tollway between Alicante and Cartagena, which makes it possible to travel from the “El Altet” airport to the main tourist destinations of our region in less than 45 minutes.

In the Region of Murcia, export activity has generated a very dynamic transportation industry. According to the data provided by the Transportation Association, the fleet of trucks that covers the principal national and European routes is made up of more than 8,000 vehicles. This is the second largest fleet in all of Spain and the largest in terms of refrigerated transportation.

Railway

The Region of Murcia connects by railroad to other Mediterranean cities like Alicante, Valencia, Barcelona and from there to the French border. Going inland, our trains are linked to Madrid, from where multiple services go to other Spanish cities and to international destinations in Portugal and the rest of Europe.

Within the region, there are two main lines to the coast, one to Cartagena city and one to the town of Águilas through Lorca. There are also tank cars and freight trains from the region’s cities to the main industrial centers such as the Escombreras Valley and the Fuente Álamo Technology Park.

But the start project is, without a doubt, the arrival in 2014 of the AVE (Spanish acronym for high-speed train), which will comfortably connect the Region of Murcia with the rest of Spain and Europe in trains traveling at more than 300 km/h (200 miles per hour). The AVE will have a stop in the new International Airport of the Murcia Region, which will be the first airport facility in Spain to be connected to the high-speed line



Airports

The Region of Murcia is currently served by two airports and a third is currently under development:

•     San Javier: This airport offers daily flights to Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia as well as to many other destinations and a number of international flights to places such as London, Frankfort and Dusseldorf. Chartered flights are also available. The San Javier Airport is located in the Mar Menor area, some 35 minutes from Murcia and 20 minutes from Cartagena.

•   El Altet (Alicante): This airport, located in the city of Alicante, offers regular flights to and from major Spanish and European cities. It is 40 minutes from the city of Murcia.

•   Corvera: The new international airport of the Murcia Region will be operable in 2011. Ideally located only 10 minutes from the city of Murcia, 20 minutes by highway from the Mar Menor area, and 30 minutes from the city of Cartagena, the new airport will be equipped with the modern services and will have the infrastructure needed to service flights from all over the world, including the largest of passenger planes.

 

Waterways and Sea Transport

 Located in the second largest city in the Region, over the last few years the Port of Cartagena has increased its flexibility and competitiveness by offering services tailored to the needs of its clients, producing a spectacular increase in traffic year after year. In 2007, volume surpassed 24 million tons making this port a point of reference in Spain.

In addition to the steady increase in the movement of merchandise, there has also been a surge in the number of cruise ships coming through the port. This is partly due to its strategic position on the western part of the Mediterranean and partly to its excellent infrastructure. Last year 44 cruise ships stopped in Cartagena giving more than 40,000 passengers the opportunity to enjoy this beautiful city.

Services and infrastructure will continue to be improved throughout 2008 in both the Cartagena and Escombreras harbors. The Escombreras port improvement project is almost finished, with the first phase completed in 2004 and the second initiated that same year. At the present time, the project is in its final stages. Businesses are being awarded operating concessions in the Area of Logistics and the Solid Bulk Cargo Terminal is being geared up to full operating capacity.
These improvements in Port infrastructure have attracted many large companies to the area, many of which have been awarded important concessions. All of this investment undoubtedly contributes to the consolidation of the Valle de Escombreras as an engine for growth not only for the port but also for the Region of Murcia in general, which year after year has achieved industrial production levels that surpass the Spanish average.

However, the most exciting and important challenge currently facing the Port Authority is the upcoming construction of the El Gorguel Container Harbor to meet the developing needs of maritime traffic and the unstoppable growth in containerized transport. The Port Authority has developed this ambitious port expansion plan in order to find an area of logistic activity for merchandise transfer and thereby free up the Cartagena Harbor for purely tourist-based use. This new infrastructure will successfully integrate the Port of Cartagena into the European network of intermodal transport, making it a point of reference for international containerized traffic.
 Two separate and independent harbors comprise the Port of Cartagena: the Cartagena Harbor and the Escombreras Harbor. The distance between the two is 1.5 nautical miles and 5 kilometers by land.

The Cartagena Harbor:

  Cruise Ship Terminal
  Sports Harbor
  Alfonso XII Pier
  Fishing Facilities
  Container Terminal – Santa Lucía Pier (ISO 9001)
  General Merchandise Terminal - San Pedro Pier (ISO 9001)

The Escombreras Harbor:

 

 

•   Solid bulk cargo terminal.
•   Príncipe Felipe Pier  - South
•   Príncipe Felipe Pier  -  West
•   Isaac Peral Pier
•   Inflammables Terminal
•   Príncipe Felipe Pier  - North
•   Bastarreche Dike-Pier
•   Maese Pier
•   Boarding dockJetty
•   Southeast mooring/berth
•   Methane carriers berth
•   Industrial setting

Cartagena Port also has a train station on site and there are convenient railroad connections from all of the piers in both harbors.

The Cartagena-Murcia highway also gives direct access to the Port ensuring that merchandise does not have to be transported through the city. This highway merges with Highway A-30 (Cartagena-Albacete-Madrid) providing linkage with Andalusia to the west and Alicante, Valencia and Barcelona to the east. The Murcia-Andalusia highway is also easily accessible by taking the route that connects Cartagena with Fuente Álamo and Alhama de Murcia.

The following pipelines link the piers in the Escombreras Harbor to the Repsol Petrol plant:

• 1 60" pipe with a capacity of 10,500 M/T per hour.
• 1 24" pipe with a capacity of 1,800 M/T per hour to pump crude into storage tanks.
• 4 pipes measuring 10", 12", 14" and 16", to load fuel-oil, with a capacity of 500 to 700 M/T per hour each
• 2 12” pipes for gas-oil with a capacity of 500 M/T per hour
• 2 pipes for gasoline measuring 10" y 12" with a capacity of 400 M/T per hour
• 2 6” pipes for oil with a capacity of 120 M/T per hour each.

The port has regular consignments to the largest ports in the world, thereby linking the Region of Murcia to Europe, America, Africa and Asia.

Private companies handle maritime transport. The Cartagena Port Authority has its own official list of prices for the use of port facilities (for example, mooring, unloading, etc.).

It is also important to point out that the volume of activity generated by the Port of Cartagena also produces a significant amount of rail transport from different areas of Spain to our Region.