Vía Libre

Vía Libre, la revista del ferrocarril, is a Spanish technical and informative magazine dedicated entirely to the railway sector. It is published by the Fundación de los Ferrocarriles Españoles (Spanish Railways Foundation), a public entity whose board includes representatives of Spain's state-owned railway companies. The magazine appears monthly in print and maintains a continuously updated digital edition. Its readership spans professionals, technicians, and railway enthusiasts. The publication was founded in January 1964 by Renfe, Spain's national railway operator, as an in-house magazine for its employees. In 1986, when the Fundación de los Ferrocarriles Españoles took over its publication, Vía Libre was transformed into a specialised railway magazine. Today it is considered the foremost railway magazine in Spanish and ranks among the five best railway magazines in the world. Vía Libre covers all aspects of railways: trains, services, infrastructure, technology, stations, metros, trams, history, technological developments, and travel. Its editorial line aims to promote rail as a high-quality, innovative, efficient, and environmentally friendly mode of transport. The print edition is distributed mainly in Spain and in 18 other countries, primarily in Europe and Ibero-America. The digital edition, www.vialibre.org, offers a daily news bulletin in Spanish and a fortnightly bulletin in English. In 2011, the website received an average of over 130,000 weekly visits. The magazine's collection of nearly fifty volumes and more than 550 issues is highly valued by subscribers and is considered an indispensable reference for the railway chronicle of Spain. Vía Libre has made its first 530 issues available in digital format, comprising over 40,000 pages related to railways. For its 50th anniversary, it offered new subscribers a DVD compilation titled "Aquellos Trenes" featuring trains from across Spain in the 1960s and 1970s.

Vía Libre was born in January 1964 on the initiative of Renfe, the Spanish national railway operator, as a company magazine—though not free of charge—aimed at its workers. Its professional editorial office was located at Calle de Santa Isabel, 44, in Madrid's district 12, which, after various premises, became the magazine's address in 2011 and had been since 1986. It was a "family" publication that formed part of the social benefits Renfe offered to its employees. It covered current railway affairs and closed with cultural and leisure sections of interest to the family. The first issue paid tribute to its predecessor, the magazine Ferroviarios, which Vía Libre replaced after 23 years as Renfe's information organ. In its issue number 170, dated March 1978, Vía Libre changed its masthead to the one that, with minimal modifications, remains in use today, featuring the silhouette of a steam locomotive with its tender. The masthead—its typography and design—was shared with two other publications: the Italian Voci de la Rotaia and the French La Vie du Rail. Together with those two magazines, a common cultural supplement, Mare Nostrum, was launched, appearing simultaneously in the respective languages in all three publications; its first instalment reached nearly half a million readers in Spain, France, and Italy. On 20 February 1985, the Fundación de los Ferrocarriles Españoles was constituted on the initiative of Renfe and with the collaboration of Feve, the other state-wide railway company. Its headquarters were set at the Palacio de Fernán Núñez, and among its objectives was the publication of Vía Libre magazine. In 1986, when the Foundation took over its publication, the magazine changed its contents—exclusively railway information—to become a specialised magazine. In the 1990s, the magazine began the decade by reducing its format to adapt to standard flatbed printing. It also took the opportunity to change its layout to a more agile and clean design, modifying its cover design with a frame in which the masthead rested. From that date it became exclusively the Spanish-language media outlet for the railway sector. Its collection of more than five hundred issues has been digitised, constituting an exceptional chronicle of railway development in Spain. In 1991, Vía Libre received the award for best magazine from the Asociación Española de Asesores de Comunicación. In 2000, its digital edition began, and a year later it won the IBest 2001 International Award in the transport category by popular vote—294,643 votes were cast—among more than 5,200 websites submitted. In June 2008, it was printed with a new image; for the first time the masthead no longer headed the cover. Vía Libre has made its first 530 issues available to the public in digital version and collected on DVD. The digitisation with a search engine programme facilitates immediate access to data, information, and photographs—more than 40,000 pages related to railways. For its 50th anniversary, it offered new customers "Aquellos Trenes", a DVD with compilations of trains from all over Spain from the 1960s and 1970s.

• 2014

  For its 50th anniversary, offers new customers the DVD "Aquellos Trenes".

• 2008

  In June, the magazine is printed with a new image; the masthead no longer heads the cover.

• 2001

  Wins the IBest 2001 International Award in the transport category by popular vote.

• 2000

  The digital edition begins.

• 1991

  Vía Libre receives the award for best magazine from the Asociación Española de Asesores de Comunicación.

• 1986

  The Foundation takes over publication; Vía Libre becomes a specialised railway magazine.

• 1985

  On 20 February, the Fundación de los Ferrocarriles Españoles is constituted, with the publication of Vía Libre among its objectives.

• 1978

  In issue 170 (March), the magazine changes its masthead to the steam locomotive silhouette design still used today.

• 1964

  Vía Libre is founded in January by Renfe as a company magazine for its workers.

The leading railway magazine in Spanish, aimed at professionals, technicians, and enthusiasts, with a rigorous technical and informative editorial line.

• Vía Libre print magazine

  Monthly print edition distributed mainly in Spain and 18 other countries.

• vialibre.org digital edition

  Daily-updated website with news bulletins in Spanish and English.

• Digital archive of first 530 issues

  Digitised collection of over 40,000 pages, also available on DVD.

• Vía Libre Técnica e Investigación

  Technical and research section or supplement.

1. 1Portada - Revista VÍA LIBRE - Fundación de los Ferrocarriles Españolesvialibre-ffe.com
2. 2Vía Libre (revista) - Wikipedia, la enciclopedia librees.wikipedia.org
3. 3Via Libre - Wikidatawikidata.org