is the common name of a frequent suburban rail service operated by Euskotren in the city of San Sebastián and the surrounding Donostialdea area, in the Basque Country, Spain, up to Hendaye just over the French border. The infrastructure is gradually being upgraded to rapid transit standards, in order to create the San Sebastián Metro (, ). The line owes its name to the large number of tunnels present. As of 2021, the San Sebastián suburban rail services are branded as part of the Euskotren Trena network, with no separate identity.
History
The meter-gauge line opened on December 5, 1912 between San Sebastián with Irun. It was extended to Hendaye the following year. The network was subsequently owned by FEVE, the Spanish narrow-gauge railway company, until it was transferred to the Basque Government in the 1970s. In the early 1980s, it was integrated into EuskoTren, along with other narrow-gauge lines in the Basque Country.
Since the 2010s, the line has been gradually upgraded towards rapid transit standards. In 2012, together with the opening of a new tunnel between Loiola and Herrera, it was announced that the line would be renamed to Metro Donostialdea. This branding, however, has since been abandoned. In 2016, a branch was opened from Herrera to . This branch, then operated as line E5, would become part of the new alignment between Herrera and . The works on the new Altza– stretch began in February 2022, the new alignment opened on 18 July 2026, thus absorbing the Altza branch into the main line.
Future developments A underground loop through the city centre was originally planned to open in 2022, but is now () scheduled for late 2026. This new tunnel will have three stations: , and ; the last one of which will substitute the current Amara terminus. When the tunnel is completed, the need to reverse at Amara will disappear. When completed, the line will be double-tracked between and .
Operations
There is one numbered line, E2. It has three services: from to Irun, from Lasarte-Oria to Hendaia (each running every 30 minutes during weekdays) and from to (running every 15 minutes during weekdays). The Irun to Lasarte-Oria service is reduced on weekends to a twice-hourly service from Irun to on Saturday afternoons. Additionally, trains running on the Bilbao–San Sebastián line call at all the stations between and Amara.
Due to the existence of various overlapping services, headways vary depending on the time of the day and location. Since 2026, with the opening of the new alignment between and Pasaia, there is a train every 7.5 minutes between Amara and Pasaia, from 2012 there had been 7.5 minute headways to . With the opening of the tunnel through the city center, it will be possible to offer regular headways in a longer stretch of the line.
Station list The following table shows regular weekday service patterns. The first trains in the morning and the last in the evening make shorter trips.
Trains stop at stations marked with "●" and don't stop at those marked with"｜": StationE2LocationLasarte/Oria-HendaiaLasarte/Oria-Irun↑ Through-service to/from or via the Bilbao–San Sebastián line ↑ ● ● Lasarte-Oria ● ●San Sebastián ● ● ● ● ● ● Anoeta ● ● Loiola ● ● Intxaurrondo ● ● Herrera ● ● ● ● Pasaia ● ● Pasaia ● ●Errenteria ● ● ● ● ● ● Oiartzun ● ｜ Lezo ● ●Irun ● ● ● ● ● Hendaia ● Hendaye
Network map
Rolling stock
The line shares rolling stock with the rest of the Euskotren Trena network. Currently, 900 series trains are used. In the past, 200, 300 and 3500 series trains were used.
See also Bilbao Metro
Notes
References
External links
TOPO