Algarve to get end-to-end electric trains from July 19

Train travel across the Algarve is set for its biggest improvement in decades, with electric trains due to operate along the entire railway line from July 19, bringing direct services between Lagos and Vila Real de Santo António for the first time in around 25 years.

The long-awaited change will allow CP to overhaul its regional timetable, increasing the number of daily services, eliminating the need to change trains in Faro and cutting journey times across the region.

According to Público, regional services between Lagos and Vila Real de Santo António will increase from 12 to 16 trains in each direction every day.

For passengers, the most noticeable improvement will be the end of the compulsory transfer in Faro, which has been part of travelling across the Algarve since the line was only partially electrified in 2004.

Faster journeys across the Algarve

The introduction of electric trains is also expected to reduce journey times.

Trips between Vila Real de Santo António and Lagos will fall from around 3 hours and 9 minutes to approximately 2 hours and 39 minutes, thanks to both the removal of the Faro transfer and the faster acceleration and braking of the electric trains.

The biggest improvement will be between Faro and Lagos, where travel times are expected to fall from around 1 hour and 50 minutes to approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes.

CP is also introducing one faster InterRegional service in each direction, reducing the end-to-end journey to around 2 hours and 16 minutes eastbound and 2 hours and 20 minutes westbound.

But late-night trains remain missing

Despite the improvements, one longstanding criticism remains unresolved.

The last train from Vila Real de Santo António will still leave at 8.34pm, while the final departure from Lagos will remain 8.22pm, limiting evening travel for residents, commuters and tourists during the busy summer months.

The contrast with previous decades is striking. In the 1960s, the last train left Lagos at 10.55pm, while during the 1980s the final departure was 9.40pm.

Intercidades still won’t reach the eastern Algarve

The completion of the electrification project will also not allow Intercidades or Alfa Pendular services to continue beyond Faro to Vila Real de Santo António.

According to Público, three ageing metal railway bridges at Faro, Tavira and Almargem cannot support locomotive-hauled Intercidades trains because they were not strengthened during the electrification works.

Infraestruturas de Portugal says a public tender to replace the bridges should be launched “within the next few weeks”.

Diesel trains replaced by electric units

The familiar blue diesel railcars that have served the Algarve for years will be replaced by yellow electric multiple units.

Although the trains date back to the 1970s, they were extensively modernised in the early 2000s and are regarded as some of CP’s most reliable rolling stock. They are also known among regular passengers for having particularly effective air conditioning – a welcome feature during gruelling hot summers like this one.

The diesel units withdrawn from the Algarve are expected to strengthen services in the Alentejo and Oeste regions, where shortages of rolling stock have contributed to delays and cancellations.

Six years behind schedule

The project also arrives significantly later than originally planned.

Under the Ferrovia 2020 programme, the remaining sections of the Algarve line were due to be electrified between 2019 and 2021.

Instead, construction only began in 2021 and 2022, with works completed in October 2025 before undergoing a lengthy certification process.

Modernisation still incomplete

While the arrival of electric trains marks an important milestone, many of the railway’s structural limitations remain.

The 141-kilometre line is still entirely single track, apart from passing loops, and no significant work was carried out to improve the alignment for higher speeds, Público reports.

The busy central section between Tunes and Faro, shared by regional, Intercidades and Alfa Pendular services, also remains single track, limiting capacity.

As a result, average commercial speeds across the line will remain around 53 km/h, meaning the railway is likely to require further investment before it can meet the long-term transport needs of the Algarve.

Source: Público