The tragedies in Adamuz and Gelida in January, which caused 47 fatalities, cast doubt on the entire Spanish railway system, not only because the accidents called into question the maintenance and safety of the network, but also because since then train travel has not been the same. In Catalonia, Rodalies still suffers from line closures, speed restrictions and service delays, and high-speed journey times have lengthened. Trips from Barcelona to Madrid now take half an hour longer due to the system, and there are unexpected delays and stops on the tracks without anyone providing any explanation to users. The reason is the speed restrictions imposed by the ministry – especially on the Zaragoza-Calatayud stretch – following incidents reported by train drivers. What complaints are we talking about? Were there more incidents than usual after Adamuz? Did the labor dispute between the Semaf union and the ministry, which ended in a strike, have anything to do with it? And more importantly, what actions has Transport taken to resolve the state of the infrastructure? ARA made a transparency request to the Spanish government to clarify these points, but the request has been rejected. In other words, the public administration has refused to release this information, and the Communications Department of the Ministry of Transport refers to the official response given through the transparency process.

For over a week now, the intercity bus stop on Gran Via, located between Aribau and Muntaner streets, has been teeming with activity. From six in the evening onwards, it becomes an unstoppable hive of activity: buses double-parked, horns blaring, and passengers rushing from work to get home to the various towns in the Garraf region, where these buses serve. Where three buses used to stop, up to six now stop—double the usual number. The reason? Once again, the economic crisis and the commuter rail construction.

Catalan train drivers are a minority in the commuter rail network. Year after year, the rail network is staffed by drivers from other autonomous communities. Most are young—between 20 and 30 years old—and choose Catalonia to settle temporarily and train. Industry sources say that the Catalan rail service provides a pool of train drivers for Renfe, but they also admit that few decide to stay indefinitely: some change destinations after two or three years, either to return home or to find a less problematic train service. Sources within the sector confirm to ARA that this trend has existed for years, despite efforts to retain train drivers and, above all, to encourage interest from potential applicants residing in Catalonia. For example, with courses subsidized by the Generalitat (Catalan government), which can cover up to half of the €20,000 cost of training. However, unions and workers point to two reasons behind the exodus to Cercanías (commuter rail): Catalonia has a higher cost of living and the most complex railway infrastructure in Spain. Regarding the high cost of living, it's worth noting that a train driver's salary ranges from €22,000 at the start of their career to €45,000 in higher categories (including bonuses), but this salary doesn't provide the same economic stability in Barcelona as it does in Mà. On the other hand, there are the track layouts, which are the most intricate or oldest in the country—there are many tunnels, numerous junctions and crossings, and daily overlap of different services (Cercanías, Regional, Medium Distance) on the same rails—and the numerous incidents that occur, including fatal accidents and collisions.

On Tuesday I told you that the State must compensate for the damage that Renfe and Adif, as non-executive arms of the Ministry of Transport, were causing to the Catalan economy. We said that the commuter rail works aren't quick, fine, but the extraordinary financial compensation could be. Well, today it's news that The Government will demand that the State pay the bill for the railway chaos.What bill? Well, some items are very clear: the free commuter rail service decreed until the end of the month, or the cost of lifting the toll barriers on the C-32, or the cost of hiring information staff at the stations or buses and drivers for the commuter rail lines that now have to travel by bus.

Anyone who has tried to catch a commuter train in recent days could say that commuting steals hours of sleep, both metaphorically and literally. Unprecedented chaos The events of the last two weeks have further highlighted the headache of traveling by commuter train in Catalonia. But this is a situation many had experienced years before the fatal accident in Gelida on January 20th brought everything to a halt. These are citizens from all over the country who have seen the commuter rail chaos become a chronic problem in their daily lives and, tired of watching life pass them by while waiting on a platform or inside a train, have decided to stay away from the commuter rail system.

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.

The Minister of Transport, Óscar Puente, has starred this Wednesday in a unfortunate intervention in the Congress of Deputies when, in response to complaints from the pro-independence parties about the chaos in the Cercanías (local trains) caused by the various works being carried out, he responded with an air of self-sufficiency and zero empathy towards the citizens who suffer the consequences: "Explain to us what you prefer, that we cut [the train lines] and work or that we work, while we provide the work;

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.

Three hours of meeting and ten agreements on the table. The Generalitat, the Spanish government and the presidents of Adif and Renfe have left the emergency meeting this Sunday - convened yesterday by the Department of Territory - with a list of measures that should help improve the train service in Catalonia or, at least, avoid The chaos in railway mobility experienced in the last seven days.

A note on a very important issue that is not in the spotlight these days: the PSOE-Junts negotiations for the transfer of immigration powers to the Generalitat. One of the negotiators says that the situation is in such a way that it can be stuck for days or weeks or develop in a hasty manner, because they are in the thick of things. In fact, it has been stuck for days: the agreement was planned around Christmas, more than two months ago.