Politics · Spain · 16 hrs ago
Pressure mounts on Adif chief after deadly Urda train crash
A train crash near Urda, Toledo, killed 69 people on the Madrid-Seville line on October 28.
Adif, the state railway infrastructure manager, is under pressure as it investigates while keeping Spain’s rail network running.
Calls are growing for Adif president Luis Pedro Marco de la Peña to be dismissed, including from opposition groups and some allies of the governing Socialists.
Transport Minister Óscar Puente is due to explain the disaster in Congress on Tuesday, less than a week after it happened.
The government is expected to announce urgent safety measures for the Madrid-Seville line, including requiring trains to proceed below 40 kilometres per hour if the LZB safety system fails.
Adif, the rail safety agency and three train operators are working on one safety protocol for such failures; the investigation is examining how trains were instructed to move after the system failure.
A train crash near Urda, Toledo, killed 69 people on the Madrid-Seville line on October 28.
Pressure is mounting for Adif president Luis Pedro Marco de la Peña to be dismissed.
Opposition groups and allies of the Socialist parliamentary group are calling for his removal.
Transport Minister Óscar Puente is due to explain the tragedy in Congress on Tuesday.
Adif, the railway safety agency and three operators are working to clarify safety procedures if the LZB system fails.
- Who
- The crash killed 69 people. Adif president Luis Pedro Marco de la Peña and Transport Minister Óscar Puente are facing scrutiny.
- What
- A train crash occurred on the Madrid-Seville line. Opposition groups and some government allies are calling for the Adif president to be dismissed.
- When
- The crash happened on Wednesday, October 28. Puente is due to appear in Congress on Tuesday at 17:00.
- Where
- Near Urda, in Toledo, on the Madrid-Seville rail line.
- Why
- The cause of the crash is not stated. Calls for the Adif president’s dismissal are linked to scrutiny of the tragedy and railway safety procedures.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Puente and Marco de la Peña committed to working to prevent a repeat of an incident like the Adamuz accident.
A train crash near Urda on the Madrid-Seville line killed 69 people.
Puente and Marco de la Peña appeared together at a news conference.
Puente is due to address the Permanent Deputation of Congress at 17:00.
- Deaths
- 69 people
- Crash location
- Urda, Toledo
- Rail line
- Madrid-Seville
- Adif president
- Luis Pedro Marco de la Peña
- Congress appearance
- Óscar Puente, Tuesday at 17:00
What people are saying
The whole organisation is under strain far beyond its limits as it searches for answers to the Urda accident, while we have not yet emerged from the state of shock and must keep the high-speed and conventional networks operating.