If you’re reading this, it’s likely you use Renfe’s Cercanías train to go somewhere in between Fuengirola and Malaga. But hang on to your hat – according to the daily 20 minutos, not only is the station closing in the city centre (Centro-Alameda), but also the one inside the Renfe train station, Málaga-Renfe. The service will still run, but the only access for downtown Malaga will be through the main train station, where Cercanias will share track space with the AVE trains. If you’re not familiar with this station, referred to as Estación Maria Zambrano or simply the Renfe, it is located inside the Vialia shopping centre, and contains both the large station for long-range trains and the Cercanias regional train stop. It’s about a 15-minute walk from downtown Malaga (click on the map for walking directions).
Starting a week from today, April 2, both downtown stations will be closed down for an indeterminate period for improvements on the loading platforms and access tunnels. This means a large majority of the people who normally use the downtown stop, totaling around 8,000 daily, will be added to the over 4,000 already using the Renfe stop. The Spanish rail authority Adif won’t set an end date for the project, but its magnitude means changes will probably take at least a year. A company rep commented that "the important thing is that the clients know it’s closing," yet you can only find a few small signs in the centre station. Doesn’t sound like it’s a big priority of theirs, especially if it took a reader tipping off a free newspaper for the press to get word – something just doesn’t add up. Maybe if we make enough fuss about it, we’ll see it in the headlines tomorrow!
According to Fecoma, Malaga’s commercial federation, the Malaga province will soon be welcoming 7 new large shopping centres and the expansion of 5 existing centres, whose space will be approximately doubled. Among the whistles in the wind for new stores are well-known consumer electronics competitors Media Markt and Fnac. German-based Media Markt is Europe’s largest electronics retailer, and is expected to add an installation in the Vialia mall. Two French companies, Fnac and Jardiland (gardening and do-it-yourself), would possibly be located respectively in Malaga Plaza (or the port) and Plaza Mayor.