The tragic twist of fate at the high-speed educate line between Andalusia and Madrid has uncovered the pressing want to improve Spain’s railway device.
On Sunday, January 18, at 7:45 p.m., a contemporary Irjo high-speed educate collided with a Renfe educate at the transfer that results in Adamuz station within the province of Córdoba, Andalusia. Irio 6189 carrier, touring from Málaga to Madrid, was once registered for a observe trade, however present knowledge is that the remaining 3 carriages have actually jumped the diverted transfer that gives observe get admission to subsequent to the platform, leaving the principle observe transparent.
This led to the remaining 3 carriages to derail and collide with Renfe Alvia carrier 2384, which was once touring in the wrong way from Madrid to Huelva. The collision was once violent, despite the fact that the blended velocity of the 2 trains continues to be unknown.
Liberalization of the railways in Spain
Spain’s passenger rail marketplace opened to new competition in Might 2021, however till early 2023, the one trains allowed to run at the Andalusia-Madrid hall had been the ones operated via state-owned corporate Renfe. The reason being that the blockading and protection device on those traces has now not been up to date.
The high-speed line from Madrid to Andalusia was once inaugurated in 1992, making it the oldest in Spain. Even supposing it’s been progressed and upgraded in different spaces, its safety programs are in pressing want of renovation.
Signaling programs
On virtually 227,000 km of railway traces within the EU, there are greater than 25 other, non-interoperable educate coverage and signaling programs. Those programs (German LZB, French Crocodile, Italian BACC, Spanish Asra and so forth) keep watch over and allow the protected motion of trains.
The German LZB (Linienzugbeeinflussung) signaling device stays in operation at the Andalusia-Madrid rail hall, put in for high-speed rail. Even supposing efficient, the program is going past the Ecu Rail Site visitors Control Machine (ERTMS), which is already put in on the latest traces.
The ERTMS specs come from the Ecu Union Council Directive 96/48/EC. The purpose is for this trans-Ecu device to totally substitute nationwide programs and to be totally deployed right through the EU via 2050. The intermediate purpose is to be in use via 2030 on 51,000 km of railway traces that make up the 9 major corridors of Europe’s core railway community.
In Spain, the brand new ERTMS device these days exists along the outdated LZB device, which trendy trains “read” with a technical resolution referred to as Particular Transmission Modules (STM).
Imaginable reasons of the twist of fate
The reasons of the twist of fate are nonetheless unclear, however it’s not likely that the educate malfunctioned for a number of causes: the trains are trendy and new, rather worn, and the remaining technical inspection of educate Irjo 6189 was once performed 4 days previous. Inspections quilt many stuff, together with situation of wheel flanges, imaginable rigidity fractures, various kinds of brakes, and so on.
So far as we all know, the infrastructure on the website of the twist of fate could also be new, which means that that the observe geometry (curves, phase planes, slopes, ramps) must be in highest situation. This leaves the likelihood that the transfer level would possibly not were running correctly.
All intermediate stations that don’t seem to be of excessive capability have passing tracks or sidings the place trains can park and cross different trains that can be coming in the back of them and now not preventing at that station.
The Irio rail unit was once converting observe to park. One imaginable speculation is that the transfer mechanism first of all labored accurately because of the sign despatched via the LZB studying the STM device, however that for some reason why the transfer level moved in advance to the “flat” place. This could reason the suitable wheel of the Irio unit to crash into the adjoining observe because of centrifugal pressure and velocity, in the wrong way of the transfer, in opposition to the Renfe unit, which was once touring in the wrong way. The Renfe educate was once pulled from the cab to an as but unknown selection of carriages, as can also be noticed within the revealed pictures.
Any other chance is that there was once an object at the observe, however that may have led to the educate to derail.
A deteriorating community
Spain’s high-speed railways, as soon as a symbol of reliability, modernity and a imaginative and prescient of the long run, progressively fell into disrepair. Delays went from rare and quick to lengthy, main Renfe to withdraw its dedication to punctuality and price ticket refunds. Ongoing incidents affecting infrastructure controlled via state-owned corporate ADIF – together with overhead traces, brakes and couplings (corresponding to within the tunnel connecting Madrid’s Atocha and Chamartin stations) – have additionally threatened buyer self assurance.
As well as, political ups and downs avoided the improvement of a unmarried, agreed plan for sustainability, modernization and community construction, which would supply a protected manner of delivery to fulfill the rising call for for rail products and services as an alternative of air commute over distances of as much as 800-1,000 kilometers.
The truth is that in this day and age there are no less than 39 lifeless, dozens injured and an overly dangerous impact of the Spanish railway device. Political and technical leaders will have to take duty, irrespective of their ideologies and survival methods. This is a transportation device this is utilized by more and more other people within the industry and tourism sectors, and is a significant part of the rustic’s infrastructure.
