Catalan-Spanish summit leaves R1 transfer undated as Rodalies delays persist

A week of strikes and rain

Rodalies, the commuter rail network in Catalonia, has run disrupted service all week. On Monday, 9 November, several lines accumulated delays of more than an hour, and the network director, Òscar Playà, attributed them to a rise in sick leave among drivers. The drivers' union Semaf denied this and blamed a shift change that requires every driver to start the service at Sants station.

On Tuesday, 10 November, a 24-hour strike called by Semaf left half of the minimum services uncovered, according to Playà. The Generalitat opened an information file against Renfe over the breach and deployed 67 replacement buses. On Wednesday, 11 November, a general strike cut service to 25% during peak hours, with no trains running outside those windows.

Thursday's morning disruption

Semaf called off its strike for 12 November, yet delays and cancellations continued. El Periódico described it as the sixth consecutive day of disruption, while La Razón called it the fourth consecutive day of delays, counting Monday through Thursday. Renfe blamed overnight rain that left some trains unfit to run, the effects of the general strike, and problems with taxis that carry drivers to their departure stations. Many trains had spent the night away from their usual starting points, so some departures could not run.

R1 was the worst affected line. For much of the rush hour, no train left L'Hospitalet de Llobregat for Maçanet-Massanes, and the few trains heading to Barcelona from the Maresme ran more than an hour late. R2 saw several cancellations, and all Regional services in southern Catalonia were also affected. Renfe said that around 8:15 about 60 trains were circulating across the network and that it expected normal service to return during the morning.

Summit leaves R1 transfer undated

The Bilateral Commission between the Spanish state and the Generalitat met at the Palau de la Generalitat a few hours before the campaign for the 29 November general elections began. It agreed to move forward on transferring the R1 line, but it set no date. The section concerned runs between Sagrera in Barcelona and Maçanet-Massanes in Girona. The commission asked the transfer working group to push the state and Catalan regulatory changes needed for the switch in management, and to process the legal instruments governing the Generalitat's relations with Adif and the State Railway Safety Agency.

The two governments also agreed 1,148 million to run the service until 2028. The text says the transfer must come with the necessary resources and that investment commitments under the Rodalies Plan stay in place. The Generalitat issued a statement instead of holding a press conference, citing institutional neutrality.

Parties split over the deal

ERC, with which most points were negotiated, considers the agreements insufficient. Junts accuses the Govern of turning the meeting into electoral propaganda. The summit was the fourth of the legislature. The Monday dispute over causes has not been settled, with Playà blaming sick leave and Semaf blaming the shift change.