Train makes unscheduled toilet stops en route due to out-of-order loos on board
The inter-city service operating between Malaga and Seville finally arrived at its destination 44 minutes late, due to the need to wait for passengers going to the station toilets en route
Some rail passengers are already jokingly calling it "the 'pipi tren' ['wee-wee train']..." and this is the rather amusing story of the Media Distancia train that travelled from Malaga to Seville yesterday morning.
The story started to unfold at 9.05am on Monday, 6 October. The train left María Zambrano station in Malaga city centre and, shortly afterwards, a train crew member passed through all carriages announcing that the train they were travelling in was experiencing "a problem with the toilets, which are unusable", according to one of the passengers recounting the incident to SUR.
Instead of cancelling the train journey, which would have left dozens of passengers stranded, causing them serious inconvenience, Renfe decided to authorise two unscheduled stops so that those who needed to get off at intermediate stations along the route to use the public toilets there could do so. The first stop was supposed to be Bobadilla, but this first stop was ultimately made earlier, at Antequera's Santa Ana station, "due to physiological needs".
Due to this incident, the inter-city train from Malaga reached Seville 44 minutes late
"The stops caused passengers to rush, as they were afraid of being stranded at these stops because it took them so long to get through the queue for services," said the same rail passenger.
Delayed
As a result of the delay caused by all this extra waiting at stations, those responsible for the train advised passengers that the train would stop in Osuna, because their train would have to wait at the crossing for the Seville to Malaga train travelling in the opposite direction to pass them. "At that point, they again encouraged passengers to take advantage of the delay to use the facilities there, because they estimated a 30-minute delay. That said, a passenger enquired and was told that she could go, but to hurry up! It was a farce", said the same passenger from Malaga. Finally, the 'pipitren' arrived in Seville with a total delay that this passenger estimated at about 50 minutes.
Turning to comments from Renfe, a spokesperson explained that yesterday's 9.05am Malaga-Seville Media Distancia train arrived at its destination at 1.18pm, some 44 minutes late behind its scheduled arrival time, "as a result of a temporary technical failure that affected the proper functioning of all the train's restrooms".
For this reason, the operator enabled "longer stops at stations such as Osuna and Antequera, so that passengers could access the toilets in those stations' facilities". "Renfe kept passengers informed and apologises for this incident." Renfe also announced that a maintenance team is already working to resolve the breakdown as quickly as possible.
In this case, albeit with a significant delay, at least the train was able to complete its entire journey. The Media Distancia service between the two main provincial capitals of Andalucía is one of the lines with the highest cancellation rates, generally due to a lack of available rolling stock or train drivers.
