A Stationary Ouigo Train Causes Tension Overload, Halting Traffic Between Madrid and Andalusia

A stationary Ouigo train on the tracks was the origin of a series of incidents explaining the disruption in traffic that occurred last Tuesday on the high-speed line between Madrid and Andalusia, according to the analysis conducted by Adif, the public manager of the railway infrastructure, and reported by Europa Press.

Specifically, a train from the French operator lost communication with the signalling systems and stopped on the track, causing up to four trains in a seven-kilometre stretch to halt in succession.

During the stoppage, all affected trains continued to draw power from the catenary at very specific points to maintain passenger comfort, such as air conditioning operation.

As a result of this high demand, the catenary became saturated and broke over the train that stopped behind the Ouigo, which was a Renfe Avant, on a stretch of track between Los Yeles and La Sagra in the province of Toledo.

Therefore, the Ouigo train is the source of the incident, as its stop forced the trains behind to halt, but it is not the culprit per se, as the reason for all the problems was the accumulation of so many stationary trains in the same section, demanding electricity.

Consequently, Adif has announced it will undertake an urgent operation within a week to change the location of several "highly sensitive" catenary elements in that area of La Sagra to minimise the risk of tension-related incidents due to catenary problems, especially in the high-speed southern corridor.

Specifically, Adif's maintenance and electrification teams will proceed in the coming days to move the catenary sectioner between 600 and 900 metres, aiming to prevent a train that needs to stop "for any reason" from doing so under this "highly sensitive" piece, Adif reported.

The infrastructure manager argues that this incident is unrelated to the state of the catenary, which was "satisfactorily" reviewed last May.

On the 4th of that month, a similar event occurred when the catenary fell on an Iryo train in the same area. That operator pointed to a 'snag' with the catenary, information that did not allow Adif to conduct the analysis that has now been completed, concluding that in both cases the catenary's fall was due to an overvoltage.

This analysis by Adif partially corroborates the version given by the Minister of Finance, María Jesús Montero, this Wednesday in an informal chat captured by cameras during a meeting between PSOE and Sumar.

"Ouigo's machines have difficulties, they stop easily and cause a delay in the entire chain. They have maintenance services that we from Renfe provide them. They do not remove the trains from the tracks or take time to remove a train from the tracks, affecting the entire chain," Montero said.

Ouigo responded that their trains did not cause the incident, as their train is not directly responsible for the catenary's fall, but it did cause other trains to stop behind.

The French operator also refuted the minister regarding train maintenance, as in that case, the service is provided by the company itself and not by Renfe, as Montero claimed.