Exceptional measure this Tuesday on the Madrid-Barcelona high-speed line in search of guaranteeing the safety of travelers and trains. The train drivers who circulate in the busiest corridor in the country have received a notification from Adif this morning, in which the speed is temporarily limited to 160 kilometers per hour on about 150 kilometers of a 667-kilometer route. “This is a temporary speed limitation. The train drivers have reported potholes and this limitation has been put in place for safety. Tonight the Maintenance area [de Adif] It will review and, if everything is fine, it is normal for the limitation to be lifted,” explains a spokesperson for the company dependent on the Ministry of Transport.
The staff of the three operators competing in the Madrid-Barcelona corridor have had access to this information about points that require lower speeds than the current ones. The note specifies a dozen points on the road and a tunnel. The order concerns the section between Mejorada del Campo, at kilometer 34.8 in Madrid, and Alhama de Aragón, at kilometer 182.9, already in the province of Zaragoza.
The measure has been taken after several warnings from train drivers, who have reported through the Semaf union vibration problems in trains that can travel at 300 kilometers per hour. Yesterday, the group decided to impose more restrictive speeds than those set by the Railway Safety Agency, dropping to a maximum of 230 kilometers per hour between Madrid and the Zaragoza town of Calatayud. Adif has reacted with greater restriction than that demanded by the driving staff and will undertake the review of the route tonight.
The reduction in the speed of passage increases the travel time between the two largest cities in the country by more than half an hour, which ranges between two and a half hours and three hours.
The decision to tighten security measures coincides with the critical moment that railway transport is going through after the , in which 41 fatalities were recorded due to the derailment of an Iryo high-speed train and the collision with a Renfe Alvia on the Madrid-Andalusia line. The damaged convoys were traveling at a speed slightly higher than 200 kilometers per hour on a straight line where travel at 250 kilometers per hour was permitted. Some of the affected travelers have indicated on social networks or to the media that they felt vibrations during the journey.
The SEMAF union sent a communication to Adif and the Railway Safety Agency last August warning of the poor condition of the lines that connect Madrid with Seville, Malaga, Barcelona and Valencia. That same month (series 106) labeled with the Avlo de Renfe brand and that provided service on the Madrid-Barcelona line. The manufacturer blamed the failure on the state of the infrastructure, while the Ministry of Transport defended that Railway Safety guaranteed the good condition of the tracks and signaling systems. This rolling stock was repaired and assigned by Renfe to new lines, in this case to provide the Avant public service.
