Spain Cuts Speed Limit on Madrid-Barcelona Train Route After Track Crack Found
January 26, 2026
Spain has reduced the speed limit to 80 km/h on a section of the high-speed rail line between Madrid and Barcelona. Transport Minister Óscar Puente said a crack was found on Sunday night on the track between Alcover and l'Espluga de Francolí, 110 km west of Barcelona. The ministry confirmed the fault is not a safety danger, so trains will keep running. Normally, trains reach speeds of 300 km/h on this busy route. Earlier, temporary speed cuts to 230 km/h were made on other parts of this line after drivers reported vibrations, but these were later restored. Sections of the Madrid-Valencia line also saw speed limits reduced recently. This move comes days after a deadly crash killed 45 people in Andalusia and amid severe disruptions to local rail services in Catalonia. Last week, a trainee driver died after a train hit a collapsed wall, leading to the suspension of the Rodalies local train service. Further service suspensions followed two incidents on Monday. The government has not ruled out a cyberattack as the cause. The Catalan Republican Left party blamed decades of underinvestment. Ramon Talamàs, president of Terrassa's Chamber of Commerce, said, "The reputational damage is as bad as or worse than the economic losses." Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez will be questioned in Congress on February 11 about the rail crisis. Investigators are still examining the Adamuz crash, focusing on a broken 40cm track piece. The damaged rail, welded in 2023 onto a 1989 section, cracked at the join. Opposition politicians are demanding Transport Minister Óscar Puente resign for allegedly misleading the public about the tragedy.
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Tags:
Spain
High-Speed Train
Speed Limit Reduction
Rail Fault
Rail Accident
Óscar Puente
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