The Government admits the "collapse" on 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 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 way south and that the return "was orderly". However, on Wednesday evening, after the eclipse, scenes of queues to enter the stations, especially those in Tarragona and Torredembarra, were repeated and Protecció Civil had to activate Ferrocat on pre-alert due to overcrowding of passengers on the platforms. This Friday, however, Nadal assured in an interview on 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 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: "A lot of 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 primarily for private transport — the Government had been warning for weeks of possible saturation on the AP-7 and asking to use secondary routes — and not for trains.

"Inhuman 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 provided." Finally, no bus service was necessary because an extra train was put on at the end of the early morning that functioned as a "sweeper train." Be that as it may, Nadal stated that, despite in his "understanding" 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 suitable 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 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 on 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 in 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 harshly 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 the Rodalies service and on roads and highways 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 barrage of reproaches. From Comuns, the deputy in Parliament Lluís Mijoler demanded clarification of "what went wrong" and to assume responsibility for the closure of stations like Tarragona's, while ERC joked about the "excellent results of this year's work" on roads and trains. For their part, Laure Vega, deputy of the CUP in Parliament, accused the Government of "failing in the most basic" by not guaranteeing adequate transport for "the majority of Catalans". Finally, from the PP, the general secretary 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.