The Government admits "collapse" at Rodalies during the eclipse and "inadequate" communication

BarcelonaThe images of saturation on the platforms and crowds of people inside the trains to travel on the day of the eclipse continue to have repercussions. This Friday, two days later, the Government has admitted a "collapse" on Rodalies (commuter rail) on the day of the astronomical phenomenon. The Secretary of Mobility and Infrastructures, Manel Nadal, admitted this collapse in an interview, but defended that it only occurred on the outward journey south and that the return "was orderly". Nevertheless, on Wednesday evening, after the eclipse, scenes of queues to enter the stations, especially at those in Tarragona and Torredembarra, were repeated, and Civil Protection had to activate Ferrocat (rail emergency protocol) in pre-alert due to passenger overcrowding on the platforms. This Friday, however, Nadal assured in an interview with Catalunya Ràdio that the train forecast "was sufficient". On Wednesday, however, the Rodalies plan only contemplated an extra reinforcement for the return from the eclipse from the south, but did not contemplate an increase in service for the outward journey of thousands of passengers towards Tarragona.

Nadal did acknowledge communication problems and admitted that it was not sufficiently recommended that people take public transport in a staggered manner: "Many people concentrated between 4:30 PM and 6:30 PM and this collapse occurred," stated the secretary, who described the public communication in this regard as "inadequate." He also raised the point that the call to travel in a staggered manner was made mainly for private transport — the Government had been warning for weeks about possible saturation on the AP-7 and asking to use secondary routes — and not for trains.

"Inhumane conditions"

Regarding the return from Tarragona, Nadal defended that it was done "orderly" and that the Government decided in coordination with the Mossos and Rodalies to close the station to avoid problems. The secretary also assured that "Renfe was instructed that if there were not enough trains, buses should be put in place." Finally, no bus service was necessary because an extra train was put on at the end of the morning that functioned as a "sweeper train." Be that as it may, Nadal stated that, despite his "understanding" that the train forecast was correct, "it did not work as it should have worked because people did not arrive on time or went in inhumane conditions, or not correct for public transport".

Regarding the reinforcement of trains, the Secretary of Mobility assured that three trains from line R11 were brought to the southern corridor, and more than 20 trains were put into double composition, in addition to a special one that departed from Tortosa. Nadal said that some of the trains that left Tortosa did so almost "empty", and pointed out that while the forecast was that many people would travel to L'Ebre, most opted to stay in Tarragona.

The Dignitat a les Vies platform, with the support of other Rodalies users' entities, has submitted a request to the Government to obtain access to public information about the planning and development of the railway operation organized for the day. In a statement, they denounce that "saturated trains and platforms, insufficient information, track changes difficult to follow safely, and closures or access limitations at different stations" were registered despite the Generalitat's request to prioritize public transport. For this reason, the platform also demands transparency, public explanations, and the assumption of the "corresponding technical, managerial, and political" responsibilities.

Opposition criticism

Faced with images of saturation on the platforms, a few hours after the eclipse, both the opposition and the Government's partners heavily criticized Salvador Illa's executive for mobility management. Junts led the offensive by registering seventeen questions in the Parliament of Catalonia to demand explanations about the "collapse" in Rodalies service and on roads and motorways such as the AP-7, denouncing the "propagandistic use" of the phenomenon. Carles Puigdemont's party considered that the Government "prioritizes public image over citizen service" and asked for details of the planned deployment.

The rest of the parties joined the avalanche of reproaches. From Comuns, the Member of Parliament Lluís Mijoler demanded clarification on "what went wrong" and taking responsibility for the closure of stations like Tarragona's, while ERC ironically commented on the "excellent results of this year's work" on roads and trains. For their part, Laure Vega, a CUP Member of Parliament, accused the Government of "failing at the most basic" by not guaranteeing adequate transport for "the majority of Catalans". Finally, from the PP, the Secretary General of the Popular Party in Catalonia, Juan Fernández, directly pointed to Illa and the Minister of Transport, Óscar Puente, as the main responsible parties: "They are not up to the task," he sentenced.