Malaga-Madrid high-speed rail suspended for at least two weeks: alternative transport, Andalusian network working conditions and tickets

Spain's state rail operator Renfe has provisionally blocked the sale of high-speed train tickets on the Madrid-Andalucía corridor until 13 December, following the serious accident involving two trains in Urda (Toledo) that happened on Wednesday, 28 October.

This does not mean that the corridor will remain closed until then. Should Adif reopen it earlier, Renfe will resume service.

In fact, there is already an early estimate as to how long the closure of the network could last. Authorities have said that it will be at least two or three weeks. This is not an official forecast, although it is based on the extensive experience of the rail sector.

First, from a purely technical perspective, there is the damage visible in the images released on Wednesday, both to the infrastructure and to the trains that were severely damaged.

There is also the recent experience of Adamuz, which points to a protocol to be followed. The court will have to authorise the reconstruction, once the investigation has gathered all the evidence.

"The removal of the material and the repair of the track could take around a week, although the start will depend mainly on the time the Guardia Civil needs and the court to investigate the track and authorise the removal of the trains," Adif stated.

In this case, the investigation is not likely to take as long as in Adamuz, since Transport Minister Óscar Puente openly pointed to human error on Wednesday, originating in the Atocha rail traffic control center. Therefore, such a thorough inspection of the track will not be necessary.

It's also important to note that the LZB railway safety system malfunctioned shortly before the accident. From that point on, the train drivers were following orders from the control center, according to Puente. The court will likely want to investigate what happened to the signalling system in the moments leading up to the crash.

"It will definitely take 15 days because there's significant damage. The images show a rail cut through a train car," sources warned.

While Adif has yet to set a timeline, operators have already taken positions. Renfe has been the most cautious, blocking ticket sales between Madrid and Andalucía until 13 December.

Private operator Ouigo has been more optimistic: "The company is suspending all its services between Madrid and Andalucía at least until Monday, 2 November, inclusive," the French company stated. "We are awaiting further information from Adif regarding services in the coming days."

When the train crash in Adamuz happened, there was no high-speed rail service between Madrid and Andalucía for a month.

Renfe is already working on an alternative transport plan, which will likely include a bus bypass to circumvent the affected area and offer a combined service during the All Saints' Day long weekend. Details will be released in the coming hours.

Already on Wednesday, the María Zambrano station in Malaga filled with uncertainty. Renfe employees tried to assist the passengers who crowded around seeking clear information about their journeys.

The word "cancelled" began flashing repeatedly on information panels. Before 11am, the authorities officially confirmed the worst news: the complete suspension of high-speed rail traffic connecting the Spanish capital with the Andalusian region. This drastic disruption to the rail line triggered an almost immediate overload of all alternative transportation options linking Malaga with Madrid.

The car rental offices within the station experienced a sudden collapse, accumulating long queues of desperate customers within minutes. Workers with urgent meetings, groups of friends in the middle of a trip and entire families crowded in front of the counters, hoping to secure any available car to begin their journey.

"They asked us for 150 euros to pick up the car right now and drop it off later at Atocha station," one person told Sur after finally managing to make a reservation at one of the Europcar counters. Another person said she had been able to hire a car to travel back to Madrid with her husband and their ten-month-old baby.

The suspension of the Malaga-Madrid rail service has opened the door to travel by bus and plane. The company providing the coach service is Interbus.

At Malaga's central bus station, the scene was very similar: a massive influx of people searching on-site for any ticket that would allow them to reach their destination. Ticket offices saw constant queues and overcrowding as people tried to purchase tickets.

Meanwhile, car-sharing platforms registered a dramatic and unprecedented surge in searches and bookings for trips available that same afternoon.

The airline sector also registered unprecedented demand on its routes to the capital. To prevent an excessive price surge triggered by the algorithm in response to the sudden spike in searches, Iberia intervened directly, setting a maximum price of 99 euros and 149 euros for business class for tickets between Madrid and the various Andalusian airports until 8 November.

The company also began scheduling additional emergency flights, including a new direct connection between Madrid and Malaga, to absorb demand. To meet the increased demand on Wednesday, Iberia scheduled two additional flights for the evening leg: one departing at 9.40pm and the other at 10pm.

In operational terms, the national airline increased its seat capacity by 20 per cent on flights connecting to Andalucía to address the transport crisis. The company specified that it had made a total of 520 additional seats available to the market specifically for this emergency day.

Iberia also launched two special routes in the late afternoon-evening slot: flight IB049 with route Madrid-Malaga and scheduled departure at 8pm and IB048 in the opposite direction Malaga-Madrid, scheduled to take off at 10pm.

Air Europa confirmed that it had joined the increased service operation starting on Wednesday, adding an extra flight to both Malaga and Seville. Company spokespeople stated that, in the case of Seville Airport, there could be two additional flights per day on certain days.

Regarding the route to Malaga Airport, Air Europa has scheduled an extra aircraft with a capacity of 180 seats each way, in addition to the two daily flights the airline normally operates between the two destinations.

Some trains are continuing normal services from the María Zambrano station in Malaga: Media Distancia (regional), Avant and Cercanías (commuter) trains. "They are running normally. The line that is closed is the Madrid-Andalucía high-speed line," Renfe stated.

Media Distancia trains continue to operate, running on the Iberian or conventional gauge track and connecting Malaga with Seville, passing through the interior of Andalucía: from the Maria Zambrano station to Seville-Santa Justa, they go up the Guadalhorce Valley through Cártama, Álora and El Chorro-Caminito del Rey, crossing the Antequera area through the historic Bobadilla and Fuente de Piedra junction, to enter the province of Seville through the Sierra Sur and the Campiña via Pedrera, Osuna, Marchena, Arahal, Utrera and Dos Hermanas.

The Avant trains, which connect Malaga with Seville, Granada, and Cordoba using the AVE high-speed rail line, are also still operating. Likewise, the two commuter rail lines, C1 (Malaga-Fuengirola) and C2 (Malaga-Álora), remain in service.

At this time, as Sur has been able to verify, the sale of seats for high-speed trains with connections between Andalusian provincial capitals remains blocked.

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