The railway chaos in Catalonia continues two weeks after the accident in Gelida, a scenario that has led the Generalitat to increase pressure on Pedro Sánchez's Government. The Minister of Territory, Housing and Ecological Transition, Sílvia Paneque, revealed that she has asked the Secretary of State for Transport, José Antonio Santano, to be stationed «permanently in Catalonia» until the crisis is resolved.
“"The situation must be resolved; it cannot be allowed to continue any longer. The service is deplorable, worse than we had imagined."
This request aims to guarantee «a single voice» that ensures effective coordination between Renfe and Adif. The Generalitat is indignant because the announcement of the return to «normality» in Rodalies for this Monday has not been fulfilled, as Adif continues to operate in a dozen locations with alternative road services.
Sources from the Ministry of Transport confirmed that Santano will return to Barcelona starting this Tuesday «without a specific date» of return to Madrid. His mission is to «facilitate direct dialogue» with the Generalitat, which highlights the previous lack of coordination among the actors involved in restoring the railway service.
In addition to pointing out structural underinvestment, Paneque denounced the «flagrant lack of preventive maintenance» and reiterated the demand for more «responsibilities» at Adif due to the two new control center failures that paralyzed trains in Catalonia early this morning. The Catalan Executive admits that if the chaos continues, they will have to extend the free pass scheme.
