MADRID, Spain – Transport Minister Óscar Puente acknowledged on Thursday that he is questioning his commitment so far to renovating high-speed lines while combining works with rail service and train traffic, as has been done on the Madrid-Seville line, where two serious accidents have occurred this year involving elements linked to that renovation, either the welding of the tracks in Adamuz or the installation of new safety systems as in Urda.
Catenary snag stops Ouigo train in Aranjuez, delays Madrid–Levante services
He thus pointed to a change of procedure ahead of the imminent renovation of the Madrid-Barcelona line, which would involve closing it to traffic entirely or in sections for 12 or 24 months, according to Transport Ministry sources. “It is one of the things we are assessing, not only for safety reasons,” Puente said during the press conference he gave on Thursday to report on the Urda rail accident, adding on the possibility that, unlike what has been done on the Madrid-Seville line, the renovation of the Madrid-Barcelona line would involve a total service closure, as is done for example in Germany, where the main high-speed corridor between Berlin and Hamburg has been completely interrupted for renovation works.
Puente conceded that suspending traffic could reduce the renovation works from five years to a year and a half, but also anticipated the criticism this will provoke. “I have no doubt that if we take the decision, for example like the German system, there will be pushback, but I don’t know whether in these circumstances it is the most prudent way.”
The renovation of the Madrid-Seville line that began in 2021 without cutting traffic has until now been a decision Puente has highlighted, in a rail service that adapted to the works but never stopped operating, with the minister having often compared this approach with Germany, where its main high-speed corridor has been entirely closed for renovation works. Puente in fact insisted on the difference, saying our system is the opposite, since in Spain priority is given to providing the service and works are subordinated to service provision, with consequences for punctuality because there are sections where speed is reduced, but not for safety, Puente guaranteed two days after the second serious accident on the same Madrid-Seville line, where for example the works finalising the implementation of ERTMS are being done at night during weekends.
Iryo Audios Contradict Puente on Pre-Crash Warning
In fact, Adif sources indicated on Monday that the renovation of the Madrid-Barcelona line, partly already put out to tender and with works due to start shortly, would follow the same method, combining it with train traffic. This theory, however, began to change with the tragic Urda accident last Tuesday, and on Friday Transport Ministry sources indicated that the rail journey between Madrid and Barcelona could be suspended for one or two years.
