Person on tracks in Madrid's Atocha-Chamartín tunnel halts high-speed trains to Levante for nearly an hour

Service interruption

High-speed rail traffic between Madrid and the Levante corridor came to a standstill on Monday morning after infrastructure manager Adif reported a person on the tracks inside the tunnel connecting Atocha and Chamartín stations. The alert was issued at 10:11, according to Europa Press, though Adif had already communicated the interruption shortly after 10:00 via social media. The tunnel is a critical underground link for thousands of daily passengers travelling to and from eastern Spain.

All three high-speed operators (Renfe, Ouigo, and Iryo) were affected. Trains already inside the tunnel were stopped, and Renfe confirmed that no train connecting Madrid with Levante via the tunnel was circulating. Passengers on board reported being held for close to an hour, with some trains stopped near Parla.

“No train connecting Madrid with Levante and passing through the tunnel is currently running.”

Cause and speculation

Adif attributed the stoppage to "the presence of a person in the vicinity of the tracks" and said the measure was taken to prevent a more serious incident. The infrastructure manager did not confirm whether a person had been struck, though passengers on board spread the rumour that a collision may have occurred. No official confirmation of an injury or fatality was provided by authorities.

Restoration and residual delays

Service was restored around 11:00, roughly 50 minutes after the initial alert. Renfe announced at 11:14 that long-distance trains were progressively resuming or beginning their journeys. However, residual delays are expected to persist throughout Monday across the Madrid-Levante corridor as schedules are rebuilt.

Separate Catalonia incident

The same morning, train services in Catalonia were also disrupted after a person was struck at an unauthorised crossing point between Cunit and Sant Vicenç de Calders. Medium-distance trains and the R2 Rodalies line were halted. Medium-distance services later resumed after clearance from state security forces, while a replacement road transport plan was put in place for Rodalies passengers.