Renfe and Adif will remove the derailed train between Atocha and Chamartín in pieces and at night

Adif and Renfe will remove the train without passengers that derailed last Saturday October 19 in the high-speed tunnel between the stations of Atocha and Chamartín (Madrid), in pieces and at night to avoid traffic interruptions. To free the track concerned, the plan designed by the two public companies provides for the section of the train in several pieces, which will be gradually extracted from the tunnel, according to Europa Press.

“This operation, which represents an unprecedented technical and logistical effort in the railway sector, was designed to restore the operation of the tracks concerned as quickly as possible, giving priority, at the same time, to the safety of passengers and the personnel involved. “, defend the two companies in a press release.

Sources from the sector consulted explain that the Renfe rescue brigade will be in charge of these tasks and, subsequently, it will be the Adif intervention brigade which will act on the damaged infrastructure. The initial forecast of the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility was to withdraw the train last weekend, with specific reductions in circulation, returning the Levante trains to depart and arrive in Atocha instead of Chamartín, as usual .

However, last Thursday, Adif and Renfe sources assured that traffic would not be interrupted over the weekend and therefore the train would not be removed from the tunnel. From now on, this new plan will make it possible to extract the train without affecting traffic, neither at high speed nor suburban, since it is carried out at night and over several days.

Research in progress

The preliminary accident report has already confirmed that the convoy was “drifting and at high speed” for more than 4 kilometers. The Railway Accident Investigation Commission (CIAB) has already published the file that will study this accident, in which it briefly explains the events that occurred in this high-speed tunnel that connects Chamartín and Atocha.

This is train 97015, which left La Sagra (Toledo) bound for the Fuencarral workshops (Madrid). It consisted of two units of the series 114 high-speed regional train, the first towing the damaged second, with a crew consisting of a train driver and two maintenance technicians.

The train ran through the high-speed tunnel from Atocha to Chamartín, but upon entering Chamartín station the lead unit (tug) suffered a traction failure that prevented it from going up the ramp from the station entrance (approximately 30 thousandths of a meter). ).

To get over the ramp, the engineer and command post agreed that the train would move backwards to gain momentum from a flatter section. While this maneuver was being prepared, the damaged train (the one being towed) became detached from its coupling and began to drift through the tunnel without brakes, without battery and with the two technicians on board.

After more than four kilometers of drifting in the tunnel (with slopes between 12 and 30 thousandths), the unit arrived at high speed at the Botanical Garden marshalling station, where it was changed from track 1 to track 2, so at the next curve after the lane change, the unit derailed and went off on a tangent, crashing into the wall.

The first three wagons of the unit (in the direction of the drift) overturned, while the fourth remained derailed, but in an upright position. After sliding for some distance, losing speed, the unit stopped at approximately kilometer 7,000.

“The two maintenance technicians who were on board the train were able to escape safely after the train stopped. There were no deaths or serious injuries, but there was serious damage, both to the accident unit and to the tunnel infrastructure,” the report notes. This event falls into the category of “serious accident” under the regulations governing rail accident investigations, due to the scale of the damage caused and its effect on safety management.