Spain’s Transport Minister Óscar Puente defended the condition of the Madrid–Seville rail line during a parliamentary appearance on Tuesday, saying it was “neither abandoned nor forgotten.” He cited a €780 million renewal plan for the corridor and announced further measures to improve railway safety following the deadly crash at Urda, Toledo, which killed 69 people and injured around 200. Forty of the injured remain in hospital, according to the information presented at the hearing.
Appearing before the Congress’s Permanent Deputation, Puente gave an account of events in the minutes before the accident and described the decisions made by Adif’s control centre. At 8:36 a.m., after the operator requested that the LZB signalling system be switched off and restarted, the centre authorised AVE train 2080 to continue under the BSL system. Puente said it was allowed to travel in normal operating mode, rather than at sight, even though LZB was still out of service and an Iryo train was stopped ahead.
At 8:41 a.m., the control centre authorised Iryo train 6076 to resume its journey, but it was unable to move and remained stopped at the entrance signal to Urda. The train reported at 8:48 a.m. that it was still immobilised. Puente said the control centre received the message but took no action.
The minister described his appearance as an exercise in accountability, saying his commitment to transparency took precedence despite hearings before the Permanent Deputation being unusual after Parliament is dissolved for an election. He faced calls to leave office from the PP, Vox, Junts, Frente Amplio, the PNV and Podemos. ERC and EH Bildu, along with the Socialists, did not demand his resignation before the investigation’s findings are known.
Puente also outlined an extraordinary plan to improve high-speed rail safety, with eight additional measures across technology, operating and safety protocols, and staffing. These include new software for Adif control centres with automatic alerts, electronic call logs and checklists. The plan also includes an artificial intelligence agent and a digital twin of the network to help monitor operations, anticipate scenarios and detect anomalies. Puente said those two projects enter territory that remains unexplored in railway safety.
The announcement follows the Council of Ministers’ approval of other measures, including the introduction of new technologies in Adif control centres and a review of operating protocols. Earlier on Tuesday, Puente ruled out resigning; Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez had rejected the minister’s offer to put his position at his disposal.
Sources: La Vanguardia.