The logistics area of the port of Santander has been increased by 45,000 new square meters with the incorporation of an esplanade that has been called the “curvilinear triangle” and which will be dedicated to increasing the traffic of rolling goods.
The space, adjacent to the Actimarsa Industrial Estate, consists of a paved yard of more than 38,000 square meters to store around 1,800 parking spaces for vehicles. Added to this is the area occupied by the construction of a new perimeter road and a new roundabout.
The works, which have cost 4.7 million euros, also include the conditioning of the esplanade, the laying of pavement layers, the installation of a 4-meter-high security perimeter fence, and the construction of rainwater drainage networks, lighting, and video surveillance.
This second and final phase of works had a prologue with the start of works in 2019 under the presidency of Jaime González. At that time, the action of environmental groups opposed to the filling of the “Raos pond” achieved the precautionary suspension of the works. Two presidents later, the new area is already operational and the total amount of the operation has risen to 6.2 million euros.
The need for new logistics space has been alleviated in the port of Santander with actions such as the upcoming addition of 20,000 new square meters of area, part of the Wissocq industrial estate, following an investment of around 1.8 million euros.
The official inauguration of the new logistics space was attended by the president of the Santander Port Authority, César Díaz; the Minister of Industry, Employment, Innovation and Trade, Eduardo Arasti; and the Government Delegate in Cantabria, Pedro Casares, who listened to the technical explanations of the head of infrastructure of the Port Authority, Christian Manrique.
As César Díaz explained at the inaugural event, this work “contributes to consolidating one of the greatest strengths of the port of Santander: road traffic” as it will allow meeting the growth of ro-ro traffic and the new logistical demands associated with this type of goods”. It is worth remembering that the port of Santander is a leader in this type of traffic within the Cantabrian coast, the first port in number of tons of ro-ro goods, in UTIs (Intermodal Transport Units) and in the share of rail-port intermodality.
Díaz explains that with this area “the internal layout of the Raos Sur area is improved, the surface area available for vehicle operations is increased, and the efficiency and safety of port movements are reinforced”.
In his speech, he again referred to the demand for a rail motorway between the port of Santander and Madrid, via Palencia and Valladolid, with the aim of reinforcing its competitiveness, expanding its area of influence, and “consolidating a sustainable model of long-distance goods mobility”.
