Adrià Ramírez: "In Madrid, the commuter rail is too far away for them: they don't have banners on their doors."

BarcelonaAdrià Ramírez (Taradell, 1987) is the president of Public Transport Promotion (PTP), one of the user associations leading Saturday afternoon's demonstration against the management of the commuter rail service. The PTP, which is not affiliated with any political party, has been acting as a lobbying group for years within the rail sector and the public administration. "I encourage all train users to approach their nearest platform: that's often how things start to move," he says.

How would you describe the last three weeks in a few words?

— I'm going to use a phrase that an elderly relative told me. She said, "So, all the sins have come out now, haven't they?" I think nothing could describe it better.

And how do you rate the administration's response?

— I would say there is a certain amount of voluntarism, but a lot of powerlessness.

Impotence or incapacity?

— Powerlessness. The problems are so serious that there's no way to solve them right now, in the time it would take to provide an adequate government response. And in Madrid, the commuter rail problem is far removed from their reality; they don't have protest banners on their doorstep.

What do you hope to demand with this demonstration?

— We want to mobilize, to push, to move things forward. The train is a key element for life in Catalonia, for social equality, for the environmental struggle, for economic development... and the situation is dire. What we demand is a radical change in the way the railway system is invested in and managed in Catalonia: it must be done very differently, with organizations closer to the local area and in an integrated way, to make life easier for the user.

Why isn't the ANC participating in this demonstration and why is it holding another one in the morning?

— We contacted many Catalan organizations that we believe play a significant role. During our call with the ANC, before they had officially announced their demonstration, they informed us that they were already organizing another one. We proposed that they join ours, as we had done with the others, but they declined, explaining that they wanted to hold their own. At that point, we agreed that there was no problem with holding two demonstrations.

But claim the same thing.

— I prefer to speak for those we represent. We are holding a political demonstration to achieve better political decisions in the railway sector, for better management and investment. Users come from all political backgrounds, but there is a widespread consensus that things could be done better through closer collaboration and transparency. I am certain that we share many points in the ANC's assessment.

Do you think there has been an attempt to politicize this demonstration?

— Yes. However, all the platforms have always agreed that we would never engage with far-right parties, for example, and we have told them very clearly that they were not welcome, and it has taken some time, but they have finally understood and have already said that they will not come.

What does the PTP expect from Renfe and Adif?

— A complete change in how it's managed and invested in. Much more effort is being put into maintenance, as well as improving the system's capacity.

Three weeks after this crisis began, there are still over 600 inspections, some 30 critical points, and more than 150 sections of the network with speed restrictions. Why has all this suddenly emerged?

— The type of maintenance being carried out is what has brought us to this point. Perhaps people who don't use the train have been surprised, but those of us who ride it often haven't been surprised at all. The speed-restricted sections are a very clear indicator of the highly vulnerable state of this network. All of this has reached a point where it affects safety; we have even had to mourn the loss of human lives. It happened suddenly, accelerated by a combination of many things, including a major storm. And we are concerned that these particularly dangerous sections will become chronic.

Some sectors are starting to suggest that train drivers are constantly reporting incidents. Do you think there might be an intentional effort to cause chaos?

— There have been train drivers' strikes in the past that we, the users, haven't understood. However, in this case, I think there's a problem we all share. We all want the tracks to be in good condition. We've lost lives: it's normal that everything is scrutinized with extreme caution. It's important that the service provider [the Generalitat] and the operator [Renfe] set the priorities for the infrastructure manager [Adif], and not the other way around.

Should anyone resign?

— We don't want scapegoats; we want real change. If someone has to resign, it should be because a thorough analysis has been conducted and individuals have been identified who are obstructing these changes.

After these days, do you think the user is completely losing confidence in the railway system?

— Not just these days. Users have been losing confidence in the Cercanías commuter rail system for some time now! It's the only public transport system in Catalonia that's losing passengers while everything else is gaining, in a context of population growth and economic expansion. It will take a long time to regain that confidence, but I hope that in a few years we can say we're proud of the Cercanías, just as we are of FGC, the tram, or the Barcelona metro.

If Saturday's demonstration is a success, what's the next step?

— What has happened in recent days should prompt a change in approach. There is a political agreement on the table to transfer part of this infrastructure to the Generalitat (Catalan government), and we believe this is the next step to move forward. In the meantime, a change in management is necessary, as I have already stated.

And what will you do from the platforms?

— We need to put pressure on the government, the opposition, the mayors, and the media to amplify our voices. A lot of activism is necessary; that's how change is ultimately achieved.