The date of April 30 marks the return to normalcy for AVE travelers connecting Málaga with Madrid, following a period of disruptions and unfulfilled announcements. The line, affected since February 4 by a landslide on an embankment near Álora, will reopen with a series of technical conditions that will impact the user experience.

Initially, traffic will operate on a single track in the damaged section, which will lead to a reduction in available frequencies and a decrease in speed through the affected area. This limitation will result in longer travel times than usual, although it will represent a significant improvement compared to the provisional arrangement in place during these months.

The reopening will not occur early in the day, but from midday onwards, to allow for final technical checks and test runs necessary to ensure the full integrity of the repaired platform. Since the service interruption, the railway infrastructure management entity has faced difficulties in meeting restoration deadlines, with previous dates such as March 8, March 23, and April 27 not being met.

This situation has forced operators like Iryo and Ouigo, who had already sold tickets for earlier dates, to readjust their commercial schedules and manage corresponding changes or refunds. The fragility of the line, which will reopen with a single track, indicates that the full recovery of its usual capacity will take several months, anticipating a complicated summer for rail communications between Málaga and Madrid.

The landslide not only affected the embankment but also essential elements of the railway infrastructure, including a track switch whose replacement requires longer periods than initially calculated. Although direct service will resume, comprehensive repair and the restoration of the double track are not expected in the short term, leaving the line vulnerable to any setbacks. Travel times could be around three hours or more, far from the best records of this connection.