The latest Commuter Rail Plan, the most up-to-date, is almost 300 pages long. It's the document that details all the railway works planned from now until 2030 to improve the Catalan network: it explains what they consist of, specifies their cost, and establishes a timeline. These range from the most ambitious projects, such as the Sagrera station, the doubling of the R3 line, and the undergrounding of the Montcada station, to much smaller, faster, and even cheaper projects that can significantly improve the network's capacity. One of these smaller planned projects is in Tordera. It's classified under the section of "strategic" works programmed to "improve network capacity" and involves building a siding in front of this station, on the section of the R1 line between Blanes and Maçanet-Massanes. "This section is single-track, without sidings, for a length of more than 15 kilometers," the plan notes. "To facilitate the resolution of incidents that may disrupt the normal operation of the line, it is proposed to reinstate the siding and platform formerly in use at Tordera station," the document continues.

The Spanish government has put figures to the state's response to the recent chaos on the commuter rail network. The Secretary of State for Transport, José Antonio Santano, confirmed this morning that the investment in 91 emergency works initiated after the Gelida train crash—around 70 of which are still pending—has already exceeded 80 million euros. "We are close to 90 million and it is possible that [the figure] will increase," he said from Barcelona, ​​at a joint press conference with the Catalan Minister of Territory, Silvia Paneque.

Excluding the pandemic, the rail crisis is, due to its magnitude and duration, one of the most serious infrastructural—and by extension, economic and social—episodes that Catalonia has experienced in recent years. After decades of neglect, it will take time and money to modernize the commuter rail network, and it will take even more to regain the trust of users and citizens as a whole. A systemic failure like this only deepens political disaffection and puts the institutional system in a precarious position, currently giving wings to anti-establishment parties of the populist far right. In this sense, it is actually worrying that Saturday's demonstrations did not have a massive turnout: it means that people don't really believe in a possible solution and it also means that the protest will be channeled through other false and more unpredictable avenues.

With fifteen minutes to go before the protest called by railway unions in front of the Ministry of Transport, a group of demonstrators traveling from Tarragona were still 60 kilometers from Madrid. Victims of their own crisis, the problems plaguing the high-speed rail line between the Catalan and Spanish capitals prevented them from reaching the demonstration. Finally, some 300 people—many wearing fluorescent vests—made their presence felt at Nuevos Ministerios, the complex of buildings that houses the headquarters of five ministries, including the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, headed by Óscar Puente. The flags of the six unions that had converged there—red, black, green, white, and blue—waved, creating a cross-section of the entire "railway family." Workers from Renfe, Iryo, and Ouigo shared the space with workers from Adif. These are the companies at the center of the storm following the Adamuz and Gelida accidents and the commuter rail chaos. "This must mark a turning point, a watershed moment," says Pepa Páez, general secretary of the CCOO railway sector, from the stage. "We cannot allow ourselves to normalize what is not normal, we cannot resign ourselves to the railway functioning on a patchwork of solutions," she adds. Noelia Martín, from the CGT, agrees and believes that the recent accidents are not "isolated incidents," but rather "another symptom of the chronic illness" afflicting trains in Spain. And Diego Martín, general secretary of the Spanish Union of Railway Drivers (Semaf), demands immediate changes and a "review of the sector and all its measures," lamenting the insufficient effort dedicated to maintaining the rail network.

After another chaotic morning on the commuter rail network, with Two new failures at the Adif control center The CUP has presented this Tuesday that they have stopped all trains during rush hour. a free online video game under the name Adventurers on the train. The game offers an "ironic and critical look" at the operation of the commuter rail service in Catalonia, in which players must drive a train with the goal of reaching their destination without delays. "Train your patience," the CUP members suggest.

Two weeks of unprecedented rail chaos and the Catalan rail network is still operating at half capacity, with many sections shut down and undergoing safety inspections. Now that the initial shock has subsided, the question is: How will this mess be fixed? No one doubts that it will take many years (and many millions) to bring the network up to date. But just as important as the injection of funds and the renovation work is improving organization, coordination, and integrating climate change into future planning.

Fatal accidents. Landslides. Sinking structures. Questionable maintenance. Lack of investment. Mutinous train drivers. These are just some of the issues that have characterized this tragic week on the Catalan rail network, which ends with a fatal accident in Gelida (preceded by another in Córdoba), three landslides, the collapse of two retaining walls (in Gelida and Pineda), and dozens of minor breakdowns. This unfortunate series of events has led the Generalitat – the body responsible for the service – to announce another shutdown of the entire system this Saturday morning. This has left Catalonia without rail service.More than 1,400 kilometers of track, but no trains.

This week the new Cercanías Cataluña commuter rail line has started operating. This joint venture between Renfe (State) and the Generalitat This marks a turning point in the transfer of the Cercanías commuter rail network and represents a complete overhaul of railway management, which will now be based in Catalonia. However, the Minister of Territory – and now also president of the new company – Sílvia Paneque, has already made it clear that "the changes will not be immediate," but that improvements should begin to be noticeable as the new Cercanías team assumes its responsibilities. Among the more than one hundred projects underway, these are the main challenges that the network (and the new company) must address in 2026:

The Government has just approved a very generic "Catalan Railway Strategy", which gives rise to a comment on the challenges we face, which for reasons of space I will restrict to passenger transport.

Overcrowded trains, delays, people stranded on the platform... The railway collapse in Catalonia could at least have a "relatively easy" solution, according to the latest report by Comisiones Obreras (Workers' Commissions). At the beginning of the month, this union dusted off a project they had already attempted to launch four years ago, in 2021, and which they now consider "more necessary than ever." The aim is to shake up the current "scarce" Avant services (which offer medium-distance high-speed journeys at regulated prices) to create a "real" Catalan public network of high-speed trains for medium-distance journeys, adequate to current demand and allowing the working class and students to travel to work or university every day. And to do so with sufficient seats, on time, and at competitive prices.

Of a great work, that of Wheel of Berà, to another: the R3 commuter line. The Catalan rail network remains immersed in its own whirlwind of improvement works, and after many delays, it's now the turn of the R3, one of the most battered lines (from Hospitalet to Puigcerdà) in Catalonia. A date has been set: the doubling works will resume on September 27 and will last 16 months. During this time, train traffic will be completely cut off between Montcada Bifurcació and La Garriga, and it will become the largest rail traffic disruption ever in the country.

With the power supply restored and all activities resumed, the only service still not operating normally in Catalonia on Tuesday night is the rail service. Throughout the day, a large part of the commuter rail lines returned to service, but with many limitations, and the schedules and sections that were still closed cannot be guaranteed. Long-distance and high-speed trains have also been able to depart, but some lines are still not operating, and those that are operating are experiencing delays and limitations. More than 24 hours after the blackout that left the Iberian Peninsula in darkness, some passengers at Sants station have still been unable to resume their journey.

Adrià Ramírez (Taradell, 1987) is the president of the Public Transport Promotion (PTP). He leads one of the most important public transport user associations in Catalonia, which is not affiliated with any political party. They are a thorn in the side of the mobility teams working in the various public administrations. "I'd like to think that now there's the focus and political will to try to solve the suburban rail chaos," he says, unconvinced.

Negotiations are intensifying in Madrid in the hours leading up to the Renfe train drivers' strike, which is scheduled to begin on Monday, with a 24-hour walkout by train drivers. The Spanish government is reportedly negotiating with unions about the possibility of the new commuter rail operator that will manage the service once the transfer is completed "being located within the Renfe group for all purposes." This is evident from the leaked draft agreement between the Ministry of Transport and the Renfe and Adif unions, which ACN reported and which ARA has also had access to. The document—which bears the name of the Ministry of Transport but no seal or signature—also proposes that Adif maintain "comprehensive management" of the R1 line, between La Sagrera and Maçanet-Massanes, once the transfer of ownership of this line takes place.

It was supposed to be a positive week for Cercanías, but it ended up being HorribilisThe sight on Friday of hundreds of passengers having to complete their journey on foot along the track escorted by the Mossos and the Firefighters was the disastrous culmination of a week that had begun with the reopening of the Berà tunnel on Monday and the resumption of service between Tarragona and Barcelona after five months of works.