SOCOTEC guarantees safety with monitoring for the L5 extension to Madrid Airport
The Community of Madrid has launched the extension works for Metro Line 5 (L5) of Madrid, a strategic project that will connect Alameda de Osuna with the Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport.
This 1.7-kilometer extension will allow the 77 million annual L5 passengers to directly access terminals T1, T2, and T3, connecting with the current L8 stop. This new infrastructure is key, given that L5 already covers 25 kilometers, runs through 32 stations, and is one of the subway's main lines.
SOCOTEC's Auscultation
For the safe execution of this work, considered emblematic and one of the capital's most important infrastructure projects, the contracting Joint Venture (UTE) formed by FCC Construcción, Sacyr, and Becsa has relied on SOCOTEC's expertise to carry out the auscultation services.
The SOCOTEC team will perform continuous monitoring throughout the entire route during the two years the project is expected to last. This is currently the largest auscultation project in the region in terms of scope, and its mission is to guarantee maximum safety during excavation and construction through precise ground monitoring.
Key Technology and Processes
BLUE TRUST MONITORING
For this project, SOCOTEC will apply advanced methodologies, employing high-precision prisms in interurban and railway tunnels. Sensors will be installed along the entire route to monitor vibrations and ground behaviour.
The management of this data will be carried out through Blue Trust Monitoring, SOCOTEC's technological platform that allows its auscultation team to interpret large volumes of validated data.
- This guarantees the security of critical information, facilitates informed and agile decision-making, and ensures the implementation of the necessary safety protocols if any movement exceeding the alert thresholds is detected.
For this project, SOCOTEC will apply advanced methodologies, employing high-precision prisms in interurban and railway tunnels. Sensors will be installed along the entire route to monitor vibrations and ground behaviour.
The management of this data will be carried out through Blue Trust Monitoring, SOCOTEC's technological platform that allows its auscultation team to interpret large volumes of validated data.
- This guarantees the security of critical information, facilitates informed and agile decision-making, and ensures the implementation of the necessary safety protocols if any movement exceeding the alert thresholds is detected.
Details of the New Station
Interchange Station
The new interchange station, which will be integrated into the Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport, has been conceived under the highest standards of functionality, accessibility, and safety of Metro de Madrid.
- Space and Design: It will feature a floor area of 5,000 square meters and a large central space of nearly 20,000 cubic meters. The most outstanding feature will be its large glazed roof of 1,630 square meters, which will allow the entry of natural light and offer travellers direct views of the airport.
- Access: It will have five access areas, four platforms, two lobbies, four fixed stairs, and nine escalators to facilitate passenger flow.
- This project, with a scheduled completion date in 2028, will particularly benefit the 40,000 workers and the more than 66 million users of Spain's main aerodrome
The new interchange station, which will be integrated into the Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport, has been conceived under the highest standards of functionality, accessibility, and safety of Metro de Madrid.
- Space and Design: It will feature a floor area of 5,000 square meters and a large central space of nearly 20,000 cubic meters. The most outstanding feature will be its large glazed roof of 1,630 square meters, which will allow the entry of natural light and offer travellers direct views of the airport.
- Access: It will have five access areas, four platforms, two lobbies, four fixed stairs, and nine escalators to facilitate passenger flow.
- This project, with a scheduled completion date in 2028, will particularly benefit the 40,000 workers and the more than 66 million users of Spain's main aerodrome
This project represents the biggest auscultation challenge we currently have in Madrid. Our mission is crucial: to translate sensor data into tangible safety.
The implementation of our Blue Trust Monitoring system ensures that all critical information is interpreted immediately and that we can make agile decisions, guaranteeing that construction is efficient and risk-free.
Relevant SOCOTEC Experience
SOCOTEC brings extensive experience to the project in the auscultation of railway works, with a track record that includes references such as the Begoña Metro.
This trajectory is reinforced by its technological capability for the monitoring and management of infrastructure, highlighting projects such as the digitalization development for the Primary Care Management of the Community of Madrid, which used 3D laser scanning technology for the surveying and control with point clouds of various health centers.
