Spain’s Transport Minister Óscar Puente has resigned, six days after a high-speed train collision killed at least 69 people and injured dozens, in one of the country’s deadliest rail disasters.
Puente announced his decision in Congress on Tuesday evening after giving evidence about last Wednesday’s accident near Urda, south of Madrid, where a moving train crashed into the back of a stationary train.
“A transport minister in a country like Spain cannot remain in office after two accidents of this seriousness in less than a year,” he said, referring to another crash in January that killed 46 people on the same railway line.
The latest collision ranks among the worst railway disasters in modern European history and is Spain’s deadliest train accident since 2013.
Puente announced his resignation at the end of a lengthy parliamentary session during which he outlined new railway safety measures and faced questions from opposition lawmakers.
He also confirmed he would withdraw from the candidate lists for the country’s early legislative elections.
“I am not only stepping down from my position as minister of transport, but… I am also withdrawing my name from the lists for the early legislative elections,” he said.
His position had come under immediate scrutiny following the October 28 collision.
The main opposition conservative People’s Party (PP) and far-right Vox had called for his resignation, alongside some of the government’s political allies.
They argued that Puente should take responsibility for a railway network increasingly viewed by sections of the public as unsafe.
Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez had also acknowledged that public confidence in the system was “broken”.
Opposition lawmakers further accused Puente of attempting to shift responsibility by suggesting human error may have caused the accident.
His decision to resign came as a surprise to many, particularly after he had indicated only days earlier that he intended to remain in office.
The accident and his departure have also placed additional pressure on the Socialist-led government ahead of Spain’s early general elections scheduled for November 29.
Some political observers believe the disaster could damage the government’s electoral prospects and make it more difficult for Sánchez to secure another victory.
Puente’s position had presented both him and the prime minister with a difficult choice. Remaining in office risked appearing insensitive to the victims and their families, while resigning could be interpreted as an admission of government responsibility.
Ultimately, Puente said his decision was motivated by “political dignity”.
Sánchez praised his former minister, saying he had “faced up to the situation, provided answers and solutions, and then stepped aside”.
“Out of dignity. Of his own accord. Out of respect for the victims,” Sánchez added.
The minister’s departure has also raised questions about whether his successor can restore public confidence in Spain’s railway network.
TRAIN COLLISION AND SIGNAL FAILURE
The accident involved a train operated by state-owned Renfe, which was carrying 397 passengers, and a stationary train operated by private company Iryo, with 147 passengers on board.
A reported failure in the automatic signalling system, described as a computer malfunction, had forced trains to stop along the affected section of track.
Audio recordings leaked to Spanish media shortly after the collision have raised further questions about the events leading up to the disaster.
The three recordings capture conversations between Madrid’s railway control centre and two train drivers in the minutes before the collision.
They appear to show that the Renfe train was cleared to continue its journey despite the other train having stopped on the track approximately 25 kilometres (15 miles) ahead.
In one recording, a control centre operator speaks with the Renfe driver, whose train was experiencing technical difficulties.
Following several exchanges, the operator instructs the driver: “Continue your journey and then proceed under [Lateral Signalling Block], at normal speed with normal operation.”
The driver asks: “At normal speed?”
The controller responds: “Yes.”
The Lateral Signalling Block is a backup system used when automatic signalling or data transmission systems fail.
In another recording, the driver of the stationary Iryo train informs the control centre that communication with the train-control system has been lost and that the train cannot move.
The driver tells the operator: “The train “is stationary in front of the entry signal at Urda”.
Following several exchanges, the driver is instructed to “resume the journey” normally.
However, in a subsequent recording, the Iryo driver contacts the control centre again to report that the train remains unable to move.
“The train won’t allow me to control the [security] system. That’s why I am still stopped in front of the entry signal,” the driver says.
The final recording suggests the controller had been informed that the Iryo train was still stationary as the Renfe train approached.
Iryo subsequently confirmed that its train had been hit from behind.
The recordings have intensified scrutiny of railway communications, signalling procedures and the decisions made in the minutes before the collision.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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