Reports have suggested that a new high-speed train service linking Malaga with other Andalusian cities is near completion.

With the property market in the Costa del Sol likely to boom as provincial capital Malaga becomes a better served transport hub, officials working on the new line said that it is now 99 per cent complete.

High speed AVE test trains reached 330 km/hour on a newly constructed stretch of line between Malaga and Antequera, according to the railway administrator ADIF, with the successful trial suggesting that problems have been overcome.

Dangers had been brought to light in the seven km-long Abdalajís tunnel along the route, but administrators claimed that the tunnel held no structural damage and that the problem was a minor one.

Affirming that plans were on target to meet the December 23rd deadline for completion, the Costa del Sol and its vast housing market could be granted early Christmas cheer by the new transport provision.

The many Brits setting up in the Malaga region may feel a sense of deja vu when the new AVE network comes into service, with regional commissions reportedly using the London underground as a model.

Although sometimes encountering problems, the London system was said to be a positive model for Malaga in its handling of numerous commuters at peak times.