A regional commission serving Spain’s Costa del Sol recently paid a trip to London to visit its underground system, in preparation for a new metro network in the region.

Using the London Underground as a blueprint for success may sound odd to disgruntled commuters in the capital – especially in light of recent strikes – but the Andalusian Infrastructure Commission hopes to take some lessons back.

Looking to serve Costa del Sol hub Malaga and also to develop urban transport in Granada and Seville, London will provide a useful example of how to run metro transport for large numbers of people.

The strains on the London system will perhaps be the best lesson of all – despite strikes and cancellations, the tube serves millions of people and gets the majority to work on time, an achievement valued highly by the visiting Spaniards.

Looking beyond the mere functioning of the tube network, the Andalusian commission is hoping to bring back insights into the workings of the congestion charge, with 80 per cent of workers in Andalusian cities using the car at present.

Cities in the South of Spain are not only industrial hubs but are also big tourist and overseas property locations, making good transport links an increasingly important issue.