UPDATE: Two HUGE names resign in scandal of trains not fitting through tunnels in Cantabria and Asturias

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The scandal over the new Cercanias trains not fitting through the tunnels in Cantabria and Asturias has led to two huge names resigning.

Tuesday, February 21 at 3:30am

On February 9, Miguel Angel Revilla, the president of Cantabria, demanded some ‘big shots’ should lose their jobs over the scandal of trains not fitting through tunnels in Cantabria and also Asturias. His wish came true this Monday 20 when two huge names handed in their resignations.

One was Isaias Taboas, the president of Renfe, and the second was an even bigger name, Isabel Pardo de Vera, the Spanish Secretary of State for Transport. Their departures were confirmed by sources from the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda (Mitma).

These two resignations: “will make it possible to implement a change with which the ministry wants to start a new phase both in the Mitma State Secretariat and in the railway operator”, the source insisted, as reported by larazon.es.

Friday, February 10 at 4:45am

Speaking this Thursday, February 9, Miguel Angel Revilla, the president of Cantabria, spoke of the scandal in which new Cercancias trains do not fit through tunnels. He demanded that the heads of some ‘big shots’ should roll, instead of two ‘toddlers’.

He was referring to the dismissal by Adif and Renfe of two managers last Monday 6. Revilla insisted that the ‘botch’ of the trains should have ‘more important’ consequences. In his opinion, this problem has had to have someone responsible ‘of the highest level’, he stressed.

Revilla expressed his views following the explanations given in Santander on Wednesday 8, by Xavier Flores, the Secretary-General for Infrastructure of the Ministry of Transport. Flores revealed that the new Cercanias trains destined for Cantabria and Asturias would not come into operation until at least 2026.

Monday, February 6 at 7:55pm

Adif and Renfe have today, Monday, February 6, fired two managers in connection with the issue of new Cercancias trains being designed too wide to enter tunnels in Cantabria and Asturias.

Last Saturday 4, Raquel Sanchez promised that ‘heads would roll’, and today, they have. Adif announced the dismissal of the head of its Inspection and Track Technology headquarters as a ‘preventive measure’, pending the result of the audit announced by Sanchez.

Renfe has also announced the dismissal of its head of  Material Management in the Technical and Operations Department. This person was the manager of the Material Management Area of ​​Renfe Viajeros at the time of the gestation of the narrow track train project.

Adif ensured that this decision will allow the participation of another person in the working group that will be created within the Mitma to quickly close the design of the train tendered by Renfe while waiting for the audit.

Both entities assured that they will collaborate ‘with absolute transparency’ in the Mitma audit and will assess their conclusions to proceed with the final organisational adjustments that are recommended, as reported by larazon.es.

Friday, February 3 at 7pm

Miguel Angel Revilla, the President of Cantabria in northern Spain today, Friday, February 3, demanded answers from the Government. It was discovered that the dimensions of the new Cercancias suburban trains designed to run on routes in the region are actually too wide to fit through the tunnels.

As a result, there will be a lengthy delay in rectifying the fault before the fleet can be finally rolled out. He called the design error ‘a monumental botched job’ and said he hoped that ‘heads will roll’.

Speaking to RNE, the Cantabrian president said that he expects Raquel Sanchez, the Minister of Transport, to ‘give explanations’ during her planned visit to Castro Urdiales this Saturday 4.

In his opinion, “there is no justification whatsoever? and it seems “unheard of” to him that this could happen to an administration. “We don’t know if it is Renfe’s or Adif’s fault”, added Revilla, for whom “the botched job is big, big”, he lamented.

According to Revilla, the President of Asturias, with whom he has had a conversation, is also “furious about this issue”, as the error in the dimensions of the trains also affects his community. “We are waiting for an answer, an answer that has to be when are we going to have these trains”, said Revilla, who urged “that those responsible pay the consequences”.

Renfe has reached an agreement with CAF, Adif, and the Agencia de Seguridad Ferroviaria (AESF) to unblock the problem with the gauges of the new metric gauge trains. They were destined for suburban and medium-distance services mainly in Cantabria, but also for Asturias, the Basque Country, Galicia, Castilla y Leon, and Murcia.

None of the parties has confirmed the timeframe involved in solving this problem. It has been estimated however that the construction of the trains that have not yet been manufactured will take around three years. Some formalities allegedly still need to be settled before the agreed solution can be implemented.

According to Renfe sources, the AESF has to authorise the application of a method that is not included in Spanish regulations but is included in European regulations and to subsequently develop its procedures.

This is the so-called ‘comparative method’, which consists of using a train that currently runs on the lines as a reference for the new trains, which Renfe will provide.

CAF will also have to hire a company specialised in the application of this method and the contract between Renfe and the company will have to be modified to introduce monitoring of the project with this reference train.

Adif will also have to provide the infrastructure characterisation data and undertake to maintain it within the same parameters.

The origin of the problem reportedly lies in the gauges published in Adif’s network statement. Renfe used that to describe the technical characteristics of the new trains in a contract it published in 2019. It explained how it would acquire 31 metric gauge trains, destined to renew the fleet of the commuter and medium-distance network, mainly in the north of the country.

Opposition parties in Cantabria have lamented the “botched job of the trains that do not fit through the tunnels” and have blamed this “new nonsense” on both the Spanish and regional governments.

The PP said it believed that what happened is a “new ridiculous act by the Sanchez-Revilla government” and considers that “we are in the hands of Pepe Gotera and Otilio”.

Meanwhile, Ciudadanos maintained that the reason given in relation to a miscalculation in the dimensions is an “excuse” by the central government for not delivering the trains to the region. Vox believed that after this “nonsense” the head that should roll “is that of Miguel Angel Revilla”, as reported by 20minutos.es.

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Written by

Chris King

Originally from Wales, Chris spent years on the Costa del Sol before moving to the Algarve where he is a web reporter for The Euro Weekly News covering international and Spanish national news. Got a news story you want to share? Then get in touch at editorial@euroweeklynews.com

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