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Comboios de Portugal

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Type
  
Incorporation

Products
  
Rail transport, Cargo

Founded
  
1951

Industry
  
Rail transport

Customer service
  
00 351 707 210 220

Headquarters
  
Lisbon, Portugal

Comboios de Portugal wwwordemeconomistasptxportalv3fileXEOCMImage

Key people
  
Manuel Queiró, Vicente Pereira, Isabel Vicente

Revenue
  
€ -225.6 million (2013)

Operating income
  
€ -75.35 million (2013)

Founder
  
José de Salamanca, 1st Count of los Llanos

Subsidiaries
  
Empresa de Manutenção de Equipamento Ferroviário S.A.

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Comboios de portugal cp porto 2240 emu 2259 2289 espinho beach


CP — Comboios de Portugal, EPE (CP; English: Trains of Portugal) is a state-owned company which operates freight and passenger trains in Portugal. Before June 2009, CP stood for Caminhos de Ferro Portugueses (English: Portuguese Railways) although the company has been using its current designation as a brand name since 2004.

Contents

History

On 28 October 1856 the first railway line was inaugurated in Portugal, between Lisbon and Carregado: the Companhia dos Caminhos de Ferro Portugueses was born. The network was gradually expanded both south of the Tagus and to the north of the country, as well as in the metropolitan areas of Lisbon and Porto and to Spain. During the second half of the 20th century, much of CP's rolling stock was built in Portugal by Sorefame - notably carriages with stainless steel bodywork.

Gradually, electrification was put in place for a little less than half the network. In 1975, the company was nationalized, and its name was shortened to CP, A plan to finally connect all the district capitals by a fully electrified double line was to be implemented from 2010. Part of this plan is based on the Swiss Rail 2000 model.

As of 2012, the Portuguese rail system is facing the threat of considerable contraction due to spending cuts by the Portuguese government. The Vouga line is now the only narrow gauge line left in operation - it is also slated for closure.

Infrastructure

The infrastructure of the Portuguese network is managed by Infraestruturas de Portugal, EP, usually abbreviated to IP

Portuguese railway network extent:

  • Broad gauge (1,668 mm (5 ft 5 21⁄32 in)): 2,603 km (1,617 mi), 1,351 km (839 mi) electrified at 25 kV 50 Hz AC and 25 km (16 mi) at 1.5 kV DC.
  • Narrow gauge (metre gauge) 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3⁄8 in): 188 km (117 mi) not electrified.
  • The maximum extent of 3,592 km (2,232 mi) was reached in 1949, but in the late 1980s and early 1990s some lines were shortened and some totally closed.

    • Organization

    CP is split into four divisions:

  • CP Longo Curso, long-distance mainline services (Alfa Pendular, Intercidades and International trains).
  • CP Regional, regional services (Interregional and Regional).
  • CP Lisboa, Lisbon's suburban network.
  • CP Porto, Porto's suburban network.

    • Services

    CP offers the following types of trains:

  • Alfa Pendular, the fastest service, whose speed can reach 220 km/h. Runs between Braga and Faro passing through Porto, Aveiro, Coimbra and Lisbon.
  • Intercidades, a fast long-distance service whose speed can reach 190 km/h. Several trains run from Lisbon to Porto, Braga, Guimarães, Guarda, Covilhã, Évora and Beja, serving the majority of the Portuguese regions.
  • Inter-Regional, a medium distance service with stops in the main stations. Runs mainly on the routes Porto-Viana do Castelo-Valença, Porto-Régua-Pocinho (on Douro Valley), Lisbon-Caldas da Rainha-Leiria-Coimbra and Lisbon-Tomar.
  • Regional, the slowest service, stopping in all stations of all lines.
  • Urbano is the CP suburban service, in the regions of Lisbon and Porto and in the route Coimbra-Figueira da Foz.

    • The network

    CP's flagship service, introduced in 1999, is the Alfa Pendular which operates between Braga - Porto - Lisbon - Faro, at a top speed of 220 km/h (138 mph) with FIAT/Siemens tilting trains. As of 2006, CP's network reaches most of the country.

    CP inaugurated new trains in suburban service in the 1990s.

    Lines/Routes

  • Linha da Póvoa (Porto Metro)
  • Linha do Minho
  • Ramal de Braga
  • Linha de Guimarães
  • Linha de Leixões
  • Linha do Douro
  • Linha do Norte
  • Linha do Vale do Vouga
  • Linha da Beira Alta
  • Ramal da Figueira da Foz
  • Ramal da Lousã
  • Ramal de Alfarelos
  • Linha do Oeste
  • Ramal do Louriçal
  • Ramal de Tomar
  • Linha da Beira Baixa
  • Linha do Leste
  • Ramal de Cáceres
  • Linha de Vendas Novas
  • Linha da Matinha
  • Linha de Cintura
  • Linha de Sintra
  • Linha de Cascais
  • Linha do Alentejo
  • Linha de Évora
  • Ramal Neves Corvo
  • Linha do Sul
  • Linha de Sines
  • Linha do Algarve

    • Former lines

  • Linha do Corgo (metre gauge line, closed 2009)
  • Linha do Dão (metre gauge line, closed 1988)
  • Linha do Sabor (metre gauge line, closed 1988)
  • Linha de Sintra
  • Linha do Tâmega (metre gauge line, closed 2009)
  • Linha de Torres Vedras
  • Linha do Tua (metre gauge line, closed 2009, apart from the Metro de Mirandela)
  • Linha Lisboa-Carregado
  • Ramal de Viseu (metre gauge line, closed 1990)

    • Passenger rolling stock

    Comboios de Portugal utilises the following rolling stock and commercial products:

    Lisbon

  • Cais do Sodré - for local trains from Lisbon to Cascais
  • Oriente - for trains to the north and to the Algarve
  • Rossio - for local trains to Sintra
  • Santa Apolónia - for trains to the north and to Spain

    • Porto

  • Campanhã - Porto's principal station, including use by Alfa Pendular high speed trains
  • São Bento - city centre terminus, for local services, northbound and Douro line trains

    • Other

  • Faro

    • References

    Comboios de Portugal Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA