Renfe is finalizing a provision in the new protocol that it is preparing on the use of free subscriptions of medium-distance trains for punish the travelers who are making improper use. According to Renfe sources, these irregular practices are “minority“Among the two million users who have benefited from the Government’s measure, but from the railway operator they want to put a stop to them.
As El Periódico de España revealed at the time, free subscriptions not only attract more demand, but also allow you to reserve a place and not show up without penalty some. Thus, there are those who reserve a seat on several trains to take the one that suits them best and block seats that end up going empty.
This affects travelers who take the train every day and find themselves without tickets, in addition to causing absurd situations, such as a train not allowing more tickets to be reserved when later on the journey it really goes with many free seats.
A Renfe spokesman explained that several possibilities are being considered when taking measures, such as the Non-return of the deposit of 20 euros that the user must pay to benefit from the measure or the cancellation of the subscription “in the most serious cases”. “There are other measures that will be detailed after the mandatory legal reports are made.”
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The free season ticket measure was approved in August by the Ministry of Transport (Mitma) with a view to “promote the use of public transport”. On the one hand, they approved discounts of 30% —up to 50% if the autonomous community does its part— on urban and intercity transport tickets. On the other, free commuter and medium-distance tickets ( including the Madrid-Salamanca and Ourense-A Coruña corridors), inspired by the nine-euro ticket for the entire network that Germany launched this summer, and the 50% discounts on medium-distance high-speed.
To benefit frequent travellers, Mitma limited the free ride to journeys between two specific stations, with a minimum of 16 trips in the four months of validity of the season ticket and with a security deposit (ten euros for Cercanías and twenty for Media Distancia). The deposit is automatically returned from December 31, when the promotion ends, provided that the user has made those 16 trips.