Dhe state railway company Renfe has ordered 31 trains in Spain with a total value of 258 million euros, which are too large for some of the tunnels in the intended area of operation in the north of the country. Roughly three weeks after the scandal was uncovered, Renfe President Isaías Táboas resigned on Monday, state television broadcaster RTVE reported. The State Secretary in the Ministry of Transport, Isabel Pardo, also made her post available. Transport Minister Raquel Sánchez accepted both resignations, it said, citing the government in Madrid.
According to the authorities, the error will lead to a delay in the commissioning of the new trains by at least two years to 2026. The prime ministers of the affected regions of Cantabria and Asturias wanted to meet with Sánchez in Madrid late Monday afternoon to negotiate financial compensation.
Taxpayers shouldn’t have to pay for it
Before meeting Sánchez and announcing his resignations, Prime Ministers Miguel Ángel Revilla (Cantabria) and Adrián Barbón (Asturias) had called for all those responsible to be held accountable. It would also have to “roll the heads of large animals,” said Revilla, for example. So far, only two department heads from Renfe and the railway network administration authority Adif have been fired. They’re just scapegoats, Revilla said.
Although the order had already been placed in 2020, the Spanish train debacle only came to light at the end of January through a report in the regional newspaper “El Comercio”. The central government has since admitted the error, but asserted that the taxpayer had not suffered any financial damage because the trains, which were too wide, had not yet been built. After various warnings, the entire production process was eventually stopped. Madrid published the new order to transport manufacturer CAF on Saturday.
The new trains are intended to replace the outdated fleet of regions that are not so well connected to the national railway network. The railway network in Cantabria and Asturias dates mainly from the 19th century and runs through a mountainous landscape. The tunnels of the two regions still have different dimensions, which do not always correspond to modern rail standards in Spain.
Spain is considered a model country for rapid transit. Operating at speeds of up to 310 kilometers per hour, the AVE trains are known for their punctuality and reliability.