Railway accidents skyrocket in face of cuts to network maintenance
The state's investment in the railway network infrastructure and its maintenance has plummeted in recent years, despite the arrival of hundreds of billions of euros in European funds and the liberalization of high-speed rail.
Spain's railway infrastructure investment and maintenance have declined significantly in recent years, despite receiving hundreds of billions of euros in European funds and liberalizing high-speed rail. The country's railway network, once a reference point in Europe, has seen a surge in accidents, including two fatal crashes in Urda and Adamuz, resulting in over 120 deaths in the past year.
According to data, accidents have increased by 142% and derailments by over 300% since 2018, with investment in maintenance decreasing by 68.75% since 2009. The government has reduced spending on infrastructure, allocating more funds to subsidize Renfe's tickets than to Adif's maintenance of the tracks.
Written by urgent.news from Expansion ES's report — not a translation of it. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
