Rail workers refuse to run trains on disputed routes, citing safety gaps
Train drivers are refusing to operate several Rodalies lines after Renke and Adif declared them safe, demanding missing technical reports.
The restoration of normal service on Catalonia's Rodalies system is being held up by safety concerns rather than weather. Although Renfe and Adif have marked several sections as operational, drivers continue to refuse travel on those tracks, arguing that mandatory technical inspections are missing. The unions SEMAF and Alferro stress that protocols introduced after the deadly Gelida crash in 2026 require empty-train reconnaissance trips and official status reports.
Renfe sent an email asking crews to reopen the R1 to Blanes and other lines linking Maçanet-Massanes, Portbou, Tarragona, Salou-Port Aventura and Sant Vicenç de Calders, but the unions claim the company ignored meteorological alerts and legal obligations under Real Decreto-ley 8/2024. Alferro’s statement accuses Renfe of treating the post-Gelida commitments as “wet paper,” noting that workers had to learn the service condition from social media and news outlets.
Why it matters
The dispute highlights ongoing safety and labor tensions that could keep a major commuter network out of service.
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