---
title: "Porto-Lisbon High-Speed Rail: First Section Finally Cleared for Construction"
description: "Portugal's environment agency has approved the execution project for the Porto (Campanhã)–Oiã section of the high-speed line. What was approved, why it was stuck, and when the 1h15 Lisbon–Porto trip might actually arrive."
url: "https://ultimateportugal.com/posts/portugal-porto-lisbon-high-speed-rail-green-light"
author: "Rex McIntosh"
author_role: "Founder & Editor, Ultimate Portugal"
author_url: "https://ultimateportugal.com/authors/rex-mcintosh"
publisher: "Ultimate Portugal"
license: "Free to read and quote with attribution to Ultimate Portugal."
review_status: "dated-report"
type: "news"
published: 2026-08-12
updated: 2026-08-12
facts_last_verified: 2026-08-12
category: "Transport"
tags: ["trains", "high-speed rail", "porto", "lisbon", "gaia", "transport", "infrastructure"]
---

# Porto-Lisbon High-Speed Rail: First Section Finally Cleared for Construction

> Dated report. This article describes events and rules at the time reported. It is not maintained as current guidance. Review policy: https://ultimateportugal.com/corrections

## The short answer

On 11 August 2026 Portugal's environment agency (APA) confirmed that the detailed construction plan for the first section of the Porto–Lisbon high-speed line — Porto Campanhã to Oiã, in the Aveiro district — conforms with its environmental approval. Construction can now begin, months later than the January 2026 start in the official plan. Nothing changes for travellers today: the target of roughly 1h15 between Lisbon and Porto is pinned to 2032, and every date on this project is a target, not a promise.

> Published 2026-08-12. News posts describe the rules as they stood on that date; the sources at the end are the primary record.

Portugal's environment agency has signed off on the construction plan for the first section of the Porto–Lisbon high-speed railway. The decision, issued on **11 August 2026**, covers the stretch between **Porto Campanhã and Oiã**, in the Aveiro district, and ends months of deadlock — under the official plan, construction was meant to start in **January 2026**.

If you are planning a trip, nothing changes yet: the fastest Lisbon–Porto train is still the Alfa Pendular at roughly under three hours, booked ahead at cp.pt as our [getting around Portugal](https://ultimateportugal.com/guides/getting-around-portugal) guide explains. What changed is that the line promising **about 1h15 between the two cities** now has permission to leave the drawing board.

## What exactly got approved?

The Portuguese Environment Agency (APA) confirmed that the *projeto de execução* — the detailed construction plan — for subsections **4 and 5** of the Porto (Campanhã)–Oiã section conforms with the environmental terms the project was approved under. Those two subsections, through Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia, were the ones holding everything up.

The section belongs to **AVAN Norte**, the concession company whose builders are six Portuguese construction firms — **Mota-Engil, Teixeira Duarte, Casais, Alves Ribeiro, Conduril and Gabriel Couto**. The concession contract was signed on **29 July 2025**, and the company answers for the section from construction through to keeping it running, alongside the state infrastructure manager, Infraestruturas de Portugal (IP).

## Why was the line stuck for months?

Because the builder tried to change the project after it was approved. The consortium proposed **two bridges over the Douro instead of one** and wanted to **move the planned Gaia station** from Santo Ovídio to Vilar do Paraíso. In **December 2025** APA said no — the relocated station would have sat in a peripheral zone with no connections to Gaia's other public transport.

What has now passed is, in the essentials, the original design:

- **One road-and-rail bridge over the Douro**, with two decks.
- An **underground station at Santo Ovídio**, in Vila Nova de Gaia — the location fixed in the environmental approval, chosen for its links to the city's other public transport.
- A **reformulated Campanhã station** in Porto, the line's northern anchor.

## When will you actually ride it?

Not soon. The green light covers one section of a three-phase project, and the headline journey time needs all of it. The state of play:

| Stretch | Where it stands |
|---|---|
| Porto (Campanhã)–Oiã | Cleared for construction; IP's published plan had works starting January 2026 and **completion targeted for 2030** |
| Oiã–Soure | Tender still being judged: two consortia bid on 6 July 2026 — Sacyr/DST/ACA at **€2.038 billion** against a Mota-Engil-led group at €2.3 billion, with price weighing 80% of the evaluation |
| Soure–Carregado and Carregado–Lisboa (Oriente) | Later phases (~128 km and ~37 km); IP's published planning runs their construction from **2027 to 2032** |

The money is moving — the European Investment Bank has approved **€875 million** for Porto–Oiã within a **€3 billion** package for the full line — but the calendar has already slipped at the first hurdle, and the first section's clearance arrived seven months after its planned construction start.

Treat every date above as a target. On IP's own figures the full line, with new stations at **Vila Nova de Gaia and Leiria** and the ~1h15 Lisbon–Porto time that news reports tie to **2032**, is an early-2030s prospect at best.

## What does this change for you now?

- **Visitors.** Nothing. Book the [train or coach you were already going to book](https://ultimateportugal.com/guides/getting-around-portugal) — Alfa Pendular for speed, Intercidades for price. The 1h15 train, ending at [Lisboa Oriente](https://ultimateportugal.com/cities/lisbon), is not something to plan any trip around this decade.
- **Residents and movers in Porto and Gaia.** This is where the change is real. The cleared subsections run through both cities: expect **years of major works** around Campanhã and Santo Ovídio, and a new underground station on Gaia's side when it is done. Our [Porto city hub](https://ultimateportugal.com/cities/porto) covers how the two cities' transport fits together today.
- **Owners and buyers near the route.** The line crosses Porto, Vila Nova de Gaia and Espinho on its way south. If you own or are buying property near the corridor, follow the detailed alignment on [IP's project pages](https://www.infraestruturasdeportugal.pt/pt-pt/rede-de-alta-velocidade) rather than assuming — this is now a construction project, not a proposal.

## What should you do next?

- Planning a Lisbon–Porto trip this year? [Getting around Portugal](https://ultimateportugal.com/guides/getting-around-portugal) covers trains, coaches and travel cards — and why booking the Alfa Pendular ahead matters.
- Weighing up Porto as a base? The [Porto city hub](https://ultimateportugal.com/cities/porto) answers the visitor and resident questions in one place.
- Deciding when to travel? [Best time to visit Portugal](https://ultimateportugal.com/guides/best-time-to-visit-portugal) makes the seasonal call month by month.

*Project milestones, timetables and fares change — verify the current position with Infraestruturas de Portugal ([infraestruturasdeportugal.pt](https://www.infraestruturasdeportugal.pt/pt-pt/rede-de-alta-velocidade)) and CP ([cp.pt](https://www.cp.pt)) before you plan around it.*

## Frequently asked questions

### When will the Lisbon-Porto high-speed line open?

No opening date is settled. Infraestruturas de Portugal's project page targets completion of the first section (Porto Campanhã to Oiã) in 2030, with the remaining phases running to 2032, and news reports tie the full 1h15 service to 2032. The project has already slipped — construction of the first section was planned to start in January 2026 — so treat every date as a target, not a promise.

### How fast will the high-speed train be compared with today?

Infraestruturas de Portugal's target is about 1 hour 15 minutes between Lisbon and Porto once the full line is complete. Today the fastest option is the CP Alfa Pendular at roughly under three hours. The first section alone will not deliver the headline time — it needs all three phases, through to Lisboa Oriente.

### Does this approval change train travel in Portugal now?

No. It clears construction to start on the first section between Porto Campanhã and Oiã. For any trip you are planning now, the existing network is unchanged: Alfa Pendular and Intercidades on the Lisbon–Porto corridor, booked ahead at cp.pt.

## Sources

- [TVI/IOL — Primeiro troço da linha ferroviária de alta velocidade recebe luz verde da APA](https://tvi.iol.pt/noticias/comboios/comboio-de-alta-velocidade/primeiro-troco-da-linha-ferroviaria-de-alta-velocidade-recebe-luz-verde-da-apa/20260811/6a7b54c1d34ed0733ba7f502) — The 11 August 2026 APA decision confirming the execution project's environmental conformity with the DIA for subsections 4 and 5 of Porto (Campanhã)–Oiã; the December 2025 rejection of the consortium's proposed changes (two Douro bridges, station moved to Vilar do Paraíso); the approved solutions (a single two-deck road-rail bridge over the Douro, the underground station at Santo Ovídio, a reformulated Campanhã); the consortium members (Mota-Engil, Teixeira Duarte, Alves Ribeiro, Casais, Conduril, Gabriel Couto); the concession contract signed on 29 July 2025; and the 1h15 Porto–Lisbon target for 2032.
- [Executive Digest — APA valida projeto de execução da linha de alta velocidade entre Porto e Gaia](https://executivedigest.sapo.pt/apa-valida-projeto-de-execucao-da-linha-de-alta-velocidade-entre-porto-e-gaia/) — Corroborates the 11 August 2026 decision and APA's finding of overall environmental conformity, the original design (two-deck road-rail Douro bridge, reformulated Campanhã, underground Santo Ovídio station), and APA's stated reason for the December 2025 rejection: the relocated station sat in a peripheral zone without intermodal connections to other public transport.
- [Infraestruturas de Portugal — Rede de Alta Velocidade](https://www.infraestruturasdeportugal.pt/pt-pt/rede-de-alta-velocidade) — The official project page: the three phases and their lengths (Porto–Soure ~131 km in two sections, Soure–Carregado ~128 km, Carregado–Lisboa Oriente ~37 km), the ~1h15 Lisbon–Porto target, new stations at Vila Nova de Gaia and Leiria, the January 2026 construction start and 2030 completion in the published plan for Porto–Oiã, later phases planned for 2027–2032, and EIB financing (€875 million approved for Porto–Oiã within a €3 billion package).
- [ECO — Sacyr e DST ganham à Mota-Engil no preço do segundo troço da alta velocidade](https://eco.sapo.pt/2026/07/14/sacyr-e-dst-ganham-a-mota-engil-no-preco-do-segundo-troco-da-alta-velocidade/) — The state of the Oiã–Soure tender as of July 2026: two consortia bid on 6 July (Sacyr/DST/ACA at €2.038 billion against a Mota-Engil-led group at €2.3 billion), price weighs 80% in the evaluation, and the jury's analysis is still pending.
- [AVAN — site oficial da concessionária do troço Porto (Campanhã)–Oiã](https://www.avan.pt/) — The concession company's official identity — AVAN Norte, Gestão da Ferrovia de Alta Velocidade, S.A. — its responsibility for the Porto (Campanhã)–Oiã section through Porto, Vila Nova de Gaia and Espinho, and the project's EU financing.

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