The Palamós to Flaçà, Girona and Banyoles Railway was a gauge

railway line Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of land transport, next to road ...

that operated over of track between

Palamós Palamós () is a town and municipality in the Mediterranean Costa Brava, located in the ''comarca'' of Baix Empordà, in the province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain. Palamós is located at the northern end of a large bay. The town is by-passed by th ...

Girona Girona (; ) is the capital city of the Province of Girona in the autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain, at the confluence of the Ter, Onyar, Galligants, and Güell rivers. The city had an official population of 106,476 in 2024, but the p ...

and

Banyoles Banyoles () is a city of 20,168 inhabitants (2021) located in the province of Girona in northeastern Catalonia, Spain. The town is the capital of the Catalan ''comarca'' " Pla de l'Estany". Although an established industrial centre many of th ...

, in the

province of Girona The Province of Girona ( ; ) is a Provinces of Spain, province in the northeastern part of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain. It is bordered on the northwest by the province of Lleida, on the southwest ...

Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. The line was promoted by the Tranvía del Bajo Ampurdán company.Morley, J. & P.G. Spencer, Locomotives & Railcars of the Spanish Narrow Gauge Public Railways, London, 1995, Industrial Railway Society The first section of the line, a stretch of from

Flaçà Flaçà () is a town in the Gironès county of Girona Province, Catalonia, Spain. It occupies an area of 6.67 square kilometers and extends the hills of the Lloreda Valley and alluvial plain of the Ter river. It borders the Ter River to the north ...

via Palafrugell and

La Bisbal d'Empordà La Bisbal d'Empordà () is the county seat of the ''comarca'' of Baix Empordà in Girona, Catalonia, Spain. It is located on the Empordà plain, adjacent to the Gavarres and watered by the river Daró. La Bisbal is known for its ceramics. In a ...

, opened in 1887. From its opening, the railway had a connection with the Iberian () gauge

Barcelona–Cerbère railway The Barcelona–Cerbère railway is a railway line linking Barcelona in Catalonia, Spain to Cerbère in France. It is served by the Rodalies de Catalunya commuter network, Renfe regional, MD, AVE, Avlo and Avant train services, and TGV trains. Th ...

at Flaçà, and provided the only rail connection to the port at Palamós and the inland towns of Palafrugell and La Bisbal. The trains transported passengers and freight, especially

cork "Cork" or "CORK" may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Stopper (plug), or "cork", a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container *** Wine cork an item to seal or reseal wine Places Ireland * ...

, which was exported from nearby plantations to destinations in France and beyond. In 1905, the line was purchased by the Belgian owned '' Ferrocarriles Económicos de Cataluña'' company. In 1921, the line was extended by from Flaçà to

, running roughly parallel to the Iberian gauge main line. The Girona terminus, at Porta de França, was some distance from the city's main line station and the termini of the city's two other narrow gauge railways, the Sant Feliu de Guíxols–Girona railway and the

Olot–Girona railway The Olot to Girona Railway was a gauge railway line that operated over of track between Olot and Girona, in the province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain. The line crosses the Zona Volcànica de la Garrotxa Natural Park and follows the valleys of ...

. In 1923, the railway line changed hands again, being acquired by the '' Ferrocarriles Económicos Españoles''. In 1928, a branch was opened to

, diverging from the main line at in the north of Girona. The line was badly damaged during the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

, and in 1941 it was taken over by the state owned organisation . The line was reopened in 1942, after the war time damage had been repaired, but it closed for good in 1956. Part of the line between Palamós and Palafrugell has been converted into a greenway. The , a wayside station building between Pont Major and Banyoles, still exists and is included in the . Outside the building a platform and short stretch of roadside track has been reconstructed, and a replica of one of the line's passenger cars is displayed.

Gallery

File:Locomotora Baix Empordà.jpg, One of the line's locomotives in 1953 File:04 palpal lw.jpg, Greenway of the route of the line File:Baixador de Mata.jpg, Baixador de Mata File:Monument commemoratiu del Baixador de Mata.jpg, Replica of passenger car

References

750 mm gauge railways in Spain Railway lines in Catalonia Railway lines opened in 1887 Transport in Gironès Transport in Baix Empordà {{Catalonia-rail-transport-stub