The first plans to build a border line with Spain in the north of the country were proposed in the mid-19th century, as part of a larger project to construct a commercial port in Leixões.

[4] Although the Portuguese state had set a three-year deadline for completion of the works, the "Société Financière de Paris", the operator for the Beira Alta line, claimed that construction would require at least five years.

[4] Thus, at a meeting on 28 May 1881 called by the Civil Governor, it was decided to form the Sindicato Portuense, supported by several businessmen and bankers from Porto's commercial sector,[4] to be led by Henrique Burnay.

[2] Complicated negotiations with the Société Financière de Paris followed,[4] and a Royal Order of 15 June that year announced the opening of the tender and its conditions.

[5] On 4 October 1881, the syndicate asked for the interest guarantee to be applied to the stretch between Boadilla and Vilar Formoso, a request that provoked heated discussions in parliament.

[4] Opponents, especially the deputy António Augusto de Aguiar, criticised the very high costs of the work up to Barca d'Alva, pointed out that it was impossible to complete the work within the deadlines presented, and once again put forward the idea of building the link between the Douro and Beira Alta lines, previously presented by the Association of Civil Engineers.

[5] After some difficult negotiations over the construction of the Agueda Bridge, the project for the last two kilometres from Boadilla to Barca de Alva was authorised by a Royal Order on 28 April 1885.

[4] The section to Vilar Formoso was opened on 5 June 1886, while the branch to Barca d'Alva reached Lumbrales on 25 July 1887 and was completed on 6 December of that year.

[4] These delays led to successive recourse to credit in Paris, which was obtained in increasingly poor conditions and mostly through the influence of the Portuguese government.

[4] In the first half of the 20th century, the restaurant at Barca d'Alva station became famous for the quality of its service, under the direction of Germano Mielgo.

[11] At the end of 1901, the director of the Minho and Douro Division of the Portuguese State Railways suggested the introduction of first-class carriages on services between this station and Porto.

[13] In 1904, the Portuguese State Railways administration organised a fast train, passing through Barca d'Alva, where it left some of its rolling stock.

One of the regular users of this system was the writer Guerra Junqueiro, who would take the train to Barca d'Alva and then cross the river to his estate on the other bank, the Quinta da Batoca.

[27] In 1979, the National Network of Spanish Railways operated a railcar between Barca d'Alva and La Fuente de San Esteban.

[33] In September 2008, Via Libre magazine reported that the Coordination Commission for the Northern Region of Portugal was looking for investors for steam traction tourist trains on the route between Pocinho and Barca d'Alva, a project that would cost around 600,000 euros.

[34] On 9 January 2020, a delegation led by Luís Pedro Martins, president of Tourism in Porto and the North of Portugal, delivered a petition to the Portuguese Parliament calling for the entire Douro Line to be refurbished and for the section to the Spanish border to be reopened.