Railway unions announce an agreement to call off the train strike

Madrid / BarcelonaThe train drivers and the rest of the Renfe and Adif workersThey have called off the strike. The train strike that began this Monday has been called off, according to Semaf General Secretary Diego Martín, following another meeting with the Ministry of Transport. The railway unions explained that they reached an agreement with the Spanish government to end the strike starting this Tuesday. Sources at the Ministry of Transport also confirmed that an agreement has been reached. The agreement reached by the unions and the government is based on increased investment in infrastructure, improved safety measures, and strengthened mechanisms to ensure compliance, as Martín explained. "It's a historic agreement for the railway," the union leader told the media. While the details are still pending, the Semaf General Secretary detailed that the agreement, which spans more than 25 pages, will effectively double investment in the railway system.

"From the Ministry of Transport, we recognize the willingness to engage in dialogue, especially that shown by the unions during the negotiations, and we commend their ability to reach a consensus," stated sources from the department headed by Óscar Puente. After three weeks of rail chaos, following the accidents in Adamuz and Gelida, the train drivers and other Renfe and Adif employees had three-day strike called which affected all rail services to the State, including commuter rail.

Another chaotic Monday

So, there will be no strike tomorrow, but this Monday, commuters did experience the added chaos of recent days, compounded by the strike of Renfe and Adif workers. Beyond the ongoing problems, this morning service was severely disrupted in Catalonia from the early hours, especially on the commuter rail network. Cancelled trains and numerous delays once again created a morning of confusion and long lines of passengers at most stations. At Sants station, passengers were quite explicit: "If the service was already awful, today it was even worse," summarized Mirna, one of the commuters trying to board a train because hers had been canceled.

The Minister of Territory, Silvia Paneque, denounced the situation this morning: the scheduled minimum services were not being met. Later, Renfe admitted that during the morning rush hour, less than half (42%) of the scheduled trains ran due to the failure to meet minimum service requirements on the Cercanías commuter rail network. The Government has asked the operator to guarantee the agreed-upon number of trains (66% of trains during peak hours and 33% during off-peak hours) or to add alternative means of transport where the drivers assigned to minimum services "did not show up." "We are going to try to ensure mobility through these alternative plans," said Paneque. The Minister clarified that they understand "the drivers' state of mind" and respect the right to strike, but insisted that the minimum services "must be met." For its part, the operator has enabled free changes and cancellations of tickets for those users who decide not to travel during these days of strikes. Regarding the rest of the country, Renfe has reported that 11.6% of its staff participated in the strike during the morning shift. Conversely, Semaf, the largest union among train drivers, puts the percentage at 100% nationwide and justifies the absence of minimum service trains by citing "organizational errors" on the part of the company. "People are angry, and it's no use telling them the ticket is free."

This time, the strike call didn't catch most commuters by surprise. Many did their best to adapt to the circumstances and arrive on time. Diego, for example, explained from Sants station that he left "well in advance" but still couldn't make it to his 10:00 AM meeting. "I wanted to take the 6:46 AM train, but it was canceled," he lamented. He had to call his coworkers to cover his shift. "I'm still not sure what time I'll arrive," he said resignedly. Cristina Arana was even more prepared. "I work in the afternoon, but I thought it would be better to leave for Girona first thing in the morning, when there are supposed to be more trains due to the reduced service, and that way I'm sure to arrive," she said. She came to Barcelona on Saturday with Avant to participate in the demonstration against the railway management and in the evening attended the Gaudí Awards gala, because her daughter was participating in the events. Although she could have extended her stay into the morning, she preferred to arrive at Sants station first thing, aware that during off-peak hours it would be "even more complicated."

Not far from her, the López Morillo family complained about the announcements over the PA system: "What they're saying is a lie, the trains aren't running." The couple is traveling with three young children and their parents; they are moving from Pineda to Calatayud and are carrying more than six suitcases. "We went from Pineda to Barcelona by train, then took two subways, and now we have to catch another train, but I don't know if we'll be able to," explained Bárbara Morillo, the head of the family. "Those people with the PAs are liars; they say trains are running when they're not," lamented her mother-in-law, referring to the announcements.

Next to the ticket vending machines, the information officers were working hard to answer all the users' questions. "People are very angry, as is normal, and I assure you that it doesn't help them at all to be told that the ticket is free," explains one of the officers, who prefers to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals at work. He clarifies that he understands his colleagues' demands but questions the timing of the strike: "Perhaps they should think a little more about the users and also about the colleagues who are working directly with the public," he laments.

Workers' protests

Throughout the morning, statements and even union protests took place. Demands for greater safety and better management and supervision of construction and maintenance were mixed with other familiar demands, such as labor issues. Francisco Cárdenas, the UGT representative for the train drivers, explained that morning, with the strike already underway, that "all parties" agreed "that safety needs to be improved": "What remains to be agreed upon is how we achieve this," he added. Cárdenas specifically pointed out that the construction and maintenance work is subcontracted and that the subcontracted company itself is responsible for supervising the work: "It makes no sense," he said.

Regarding the possibility of normal service returning in April, as Renfe stated a few days ago, Cárdenas described it as "just barely." "There are quite a few critical points, and we've had them for months and months. Perhaps the points that need the most urgent repairs can be finished, but there will still be everything else, and that's without considering what could happen if another storm hits," he pointed out.

The AP-7 reopens and the C-32 becomes a toll road again.

Meanwhile, two main freight arteries, the AP-7 and the section of the R4 between Sant Sadurní d'Anoia and Martorell, reopened early this morning, but only for freight traffic. The AP-7 resumed normal traffic flow after...three weeks of cuttingFollowing the derailment in Gelida, caused by the collapse of a retaining wall on the road. Once the conditioning and stabilization works on the affected slope were completed, which involveda dart in the Catalan economyThe three lanes of traffic were reopened at 3:00 AM, according to the Catalan Traffic Service (SCT). A few hours later, the Catalan Government announced that the C-32 tolls, which had been lifted to facilitate traffic flow while the AP-7 was under construction, would resume operation at midnight. With the completion of the works on this same wall, freight trains can now also run on the section of the R4 line that remained closed due to the Gelida accident. This was announced by the Secretary of State for Transport, José Antonio Santano, in a message on social media. Passenger trains can also use the section, but are not yet running on it.