The new Puerta del Sol commuter rail station in Madrid, built by FCC, has been recognized as the Best Public Works Project of 2009 by the Madrid Chapter of the Spanish Association of Civil Engineers (Colegio de Ingenieros de Caminos, Canales y Puertos).

The jury commended the scale and complexity of the technical, environmental, and utility-related challenges that had to be resolved—situated as the project was in the city's historic center and at "Kilometer Zero" of the road network. Successfully overcoming these challenges has transformed the station into an iconic public transport project for the region and a benchmark for the work civil engineers perform for Madrid society.

Key contributors included:

• From the Directorate General for Railway Infrastructure team: Javier Gallego López, Emilio de la Torre Sánchez, and Pedro María Lekuona García (Project Directors).
• From the Project Management team: Francisco Sánchez Ayala (Project Director) and Guillermo Dierssen Sotos (Lead Designer/Author – Sener Eurocontrol Joint Venture).
• From the FCC Construcción and CONVENSA team (Joint Venture): Avelino J. Acero Díaz, Alejandro Cisneros Müller, Ricardo Gil Edo, Juan Girón Garrido (Joint Venture Manager), and José Luis del Valle Sánchez-Prieto (Site Manager).
• Technical Assistance: Miguel Guerrero Igea (Prointec).

Avelino Acero, Director General of FCC Construcción, accepted the award from the Secretary of State for Planning and Infrastructure (Ministry of Public Works) at a ceremony held on November 26, 2009.

The Puerta del Sol station, inaugurated on June 27 by Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, is part of the new commuter rail link between Atocha and Chamartín. The station cavern—unique in the world due to its characteristics, measuring 207 meters in length and 15 meters in height—has been designed as a split-level space: a lower platform area and an upper level, known as the "mezzanine," which facilitates passenger flow throughout the hall and provides access to the platforms.