Adif president resigns a day after Spain's transport minister over fatal crashes

Marco de la Peña resigned after meeting Carlos Cuerpo on 4 November 2026. His resignation followed the 28 October Urda collision and Puente's departure.

Puente announced his resignation in Congress on 3 November 2026, after an appearance before the Standing Committee that ran roughly four hours. He had been summoned to explain the Urda crash and withdrew his name from the PSOE's lists for the 29 November general election.

According to Puente's own account, Pedro Sánchez learned of the decision only a few minutes before it became public. "The president knew nothing," he told reporters in the corridors of the lower house.

Sánchez announced on 4 November that Cuerpo, the economy minister and first deputy prime minister, would temporarily oversee the transport portfolio. The prime minister praised Cuerpo's management capability and integrity. Puente, a lawyer and former mayor, had held the ministry since November 2023 and was a close ally of Sánchez.

Two crashes, one year, and an election in three weeks

The Urda collision happened on 28 October 2026 outside the village of Urda, around 130 kilometres south of Madrid. A Renfe AVE train struck the rear of a stationary Iryo service, killing at least 69 people and injuring more than 100, according to the BBC; Demócrata reported 74 dead.

It was the second fatal crash on the Madrid-Seville corridor in under a year. In January 2026 a collision at Adamuz killed 46 people.

Spain votes on 29 November 2026, and Sánchez trails in the opinion polls. Opinion polls conducted after the 28 October crash showed a slight decline in support for the ruling party, Gossip Lanka News reported.

Puente cast the decision as a matter of office rather than personal fault. "A transport minister in a country like Spain cannot remain in office after two accidents of such seriousness in less than a year," he told lawmakers.

What the control centre did

Investigators are examining the failure of the LZB train protection system, which stopped six trains automatically along a 63-kilometre stretch of the Madrid-Seville line. Adif's control centre in Madrid then authorised the Renfe train to resume normal running.

The inquiry is examining whether the Renfe train should have proceeded at no more than 40 km/h under restricted sight conditions, as normal protocols require, while the Iryo service stood stationary ahead. The Renfe train struck the Iryo train at kilometre 118 of the line, outside Urda.

Unions and opposition parties had called for Puente to step down, and critics accused him of placing too much responsibility for the crash on a control centre operator. Raquel Ayllon, a union leader at Adif, said people were not focusing on the central issue: the failure of the safety system.

The safety plan and the money

Hours before he resigned, Puente presented an extraordinary railway safety plan on 3 November. It requires a second controller to validate decisions when automatic train protection is unavailable, and adds control-centre software with automatic warnings and electronic communication records.

Longer-term proposals include artificial intelligence monitoring and a digital twin of the network, alongside more traffic-control staff, revised fatigue-management arrangements and simulator-based training. The government also announced a €30 million emergency package, about $33.5 million, split into €15 million in direct assistance and €15 million in advance compensation for victims and their families. The decree also establishes support offices and additional employment protections.

Adif intends to renew about 400 metres of track as a precaution, though direct damage covers slightly more than 40 metres.

What happens next

The Madrid-Seville line remained closed on 5 November, according to Adif's latest traffic bulletin. Madrid-Toledo and Málaga-Seville services are still running.

Adif has asked a judge for authorisation to begin repairs. The government estimates the work could be finished within ten calendar days of approval, and no reopening date has been confirmed. Even after reopening, Madrid-Seville services will run with fewer departures until an extraordinary safety assessment is complete and ERTMS Level 2 is installed, expected in early 2027. The Madrid-Seville route was Spain's first high-speed line, opened in 1992.