Train drivers across every company in Spain's state Renfe group began a 24-hour strike at 00:01 on Thursday, October 29, in a stoppage the Semaf drivers' union kept in place even after Wednesday's deadly high-speed collision near Urda, Pollar News reported, citing the union and Spanish media. The strike runs until 23:59 on Thursday.
Source: Pollar News
The strike follows the earlier development Awaaz Punjab reported on Wednesday: on the morning of October 28, a Renfe high-speed train and an Iryo service collided near Urda, in Toledo province, on the Madrid–Seville line. Press reports put the death toll at at least 68, with about 50 people injured, Pollar News said. Semaf said it did not yet know the full scale of the accident or the condition of the drivers in the cab of the Renfe train, declined to speculate on causes, and urged caution until the investigation produces verified results.
Why the drivers are striking
Semaf says the stoppage was called to demand safety improvements, and that commitments made after the Adamuz crash in January — which killed 46 people — and the Gélida accident have stalled. Its demands include binding protocols for weather alerts, clear rules for coordinating communications in risky situations, hiring more drivers, support after people are struck by trains, and more reliable rolling stock, as well as unblocking reduced retirement-age coefficients for drivers, according to Pollar News.
Renfe answered that it had met the totality of the commitments in the agreement of February 9, while respecting the right to strike and warning that the stoppage could affect thousands of passengers. Reports differ on how many staff are taking part: ABC cited about 100 drivers, while RTVE cited around 6,000 Renfe group workers called out, Pollar News reported.
Travel disruption across Spain
The Madrid–Andalusia high-speed line remains interrupted after the collision, and Renfe has suspended its Madrid–Andalusia services for the whole of Thursday, including trains from Barcelona and Valencia to Seville and Málaga, and advised passengers not to travel unless essential. Alternative road services are running between Madrid and Ciudad Real and Puertollano, adding about 90 minutes to journeys, russpain reported. The Transport Ministry's minimum-services levels, set in a resolution signed on October 23, require 73% of high-speed and long-distance trains, 75% of Cercanías commuter trains at peak hours and 50% off-peak, 65% of Media Distancia services and 26% of freight, according to the ministry text summarised by Railway Supply.
Source: Railway Supply
In Catalonia, the civil protection agency placed its Ferrocat rail emergency plan on pre-alert, with Rodalies commuter minimum services set at 66% in peak hours and 33% for the rest of the day, and officials describing the day as likely to be very complicated and recommending teleworking where possible, Pollar News reported.
The strike had been announced on Friday, October 23, after a pre-conflict procedure failed to settle the dispute — five days before the Urda collision. ABC also reported that the Transport Minister's main response so far has been temporary speed restrictions on about 4,000 km of high-speed track, adjusted by infrastructure manager Adif as traffic changes. Drivers at rival operator Ouigo are due to strike separately on Friday, October 30, and the investigation into the Urda collision is under way.