Completion of the first phase to set up the Basque Railway Museum premises at the former Lutxana train station (Barakaldo)

- The platforms will take visitors on a journey through the history of the train in the area; historic railway equipment will be exhibited on the trackss and will feature a steam engine, several carriages (wagons) and a brake van. 

- The second phase will involve converting the upper floor of the former La Robla train station into an exhibition area. 

On Friday the, Basque Minister for Sustainable Mobility, Susana García Chueca, and the Basque Minister for Tourism, Trade and Consumer Affairs, Javier Hurtado, visited the work being carried out by Euskal Trenbide Sarea (ETS), the publicly-owned entity of the Basque Government, at the former Lutxana railway station, which was part of the old La Robla railway between León and Lutxana; the station will now have a mixed use, as it will become Euskotren Museoa - Basque Railway Museum premises, managed by the publicly-owned company, and will also continue to operate as a commuter train station. 

Both government officials were able to see the work to refurbished of the part of the station transferred to the Basque Government, as it is a shared ownership infrastructure between ETS (Basque Government) and ADIF (Central Government). The two-storey building is located between the tracks and, while commuter trains will continue to transport passengers on the part run by the state railway operator – along the set of tracks nearest to the River Nervión –, the refurbishment project to showcase the railway heritage is taking shape in the part run by the regional authority, closed to the Lutxana neighbourhood in Barakaldo. 

The first phase of the work has involved renovating the platforms and the areas adjacent to the station dating back to 1894; the aim is to improve accessibility so they can be used to exhibit part of the history of the railway and its importance for the social and economic development of the area. In the coming months, Euskotren will embark on refurbishing and positioning different historic railway equipment – which is already in the safekeeping of the Basque Railway Museum – along with the Guipúzcoa locomotive, a saloon carriage, a first-class carriage, a third-class carriage and a brake van; the Bilbao Friends of the Railway Association Friends of the Railway Association recently donated the last ones of that list. Once the material has been refurbished, it will be positioned on the disused channels owned by the regional authority, as the Irauregi-Lutxana Barakaldo line was deemed to be no longer of interest to the Spanish State in 2018 and transferred to the Basque Government. 

The second phase – renovating the inside of the building – is planned for the future. Work will be carried out to the ground floor so it can used by the general public. It was previously home to the high speed workshop and the offices of the stationmaster and the signaller of the Bilbao to Portugalete railway, along with waiting rooms for passengers using the La Robla train.  The plan is for the upper storey – which was used for the station workers’ residence and the ticket office – to be used as a new exhibition area for historic railway items. The station will thus become a satellite venue of the Basque Railway Museum in Azpeitia (Gipuzkoa). 

The Basque Minister for Sustainable Mobility, Susana García Chueca, stressed that ‘this is not just about refurbishing a railway space as it goes much further’. She went on to say that ‘we are looking at how we can – from the railway – reach out beyond the world of the train and can create a place of interest where locals and visitors alike can learn about our industrial, mining and railway past, and its importance for the social and economic development of the area’. 

In turn, the Basque Minister for Tourism, Trade and Consumer Affairs, Javier Hurtado explained that ‘our commitment to industrial tourism can be summarised in a phase: we need to know from where we have come to know where we are going’.  He stressed that ‘the projects that we are driving using the Preferential Action Funds, such as this future Basque Railway Museum at Lutxana station, are examples of preserving our memory as a society. And of being able to do so through such a universal resource as tourism, which not only seeks to attract visitors, but also to protect our history and our legacy’. 

Lutxana will thus have a railway heritage interpretation centre, located a highly symbolic point of the Basque Country in that regard, as it was one of Spain’s largest railways junctions at the end of the 19th century and early 20th. Five railways started in Lutxana and were used to transport the iron ore from the mines of El Regato (Barakaldo) and La Arboleda (Trapagaran) to the loading docks on the left bank of the River Nervión to be shipped to other countries. 

The Basque Government has so far invested €568,000 in the project. The work in this first phase to refurbish the spaces and turn them into a new exhibition area comes under the interventions within the Ezkerraldea Priority Action Zone (ZAP).

The work has basically consisted of revamping the outside areas of the station; solutions have been found for the lack of accessibility at the current entrances to the building and the adjacent urban area.

The project already implemented has further bolstered the aesthetic spirit of the early 20th century in terms finishes, shelters, lighting and locks, while always ensuring that the regular Renfe service is able to operate and run smoothly.