NAIROBI, Kenya – Spain’s Transport Minister Óscar Puente has announced his intention to resign following a high-speed train collision that killed 69 people, as mounting scrutiny over railway safety puts pressure on Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s government ahead of the November 29 general election.
Puente made the announcement on Tuesday, November 3, at the end of a lengthy appearance before lawmakers, six days after a Renfe train crashed into the rear of a stationary Iryo service near Urda, south of Madrid.
He said a transport minister could not remain in office after two accidents of such severity in less than a year, referring to the January rail disaster that killed 46 people.
However, Puente did not specify when his departure would take effect.
“I am not only stepping down from my position as minister of transport, but… I am also withdrawing my name from the lists for the early legislative elections,” he told lawmakers.
The minister said his decision had been driven by political dignity, consistency and respect for the victims. He explained that he had continued working after the October 28 collision to oversee the response and introduce measures intended to prevent similar disasters.
Prime Minister Sánchez praised Puente, saying he had faced the situation, provided answers and solutions before deciding to step aside.
The announcement followed weeks of pressure from opposition parties, including the conservative People’s Party (PP) and far-right Vox, which had demanded the minister’s departure. Some government allies had also questioned whether he should remain in office.
Critics argued that the government needed to take responsibility for the state of the country’s railway system. Sánchez had previously acknowledged that public confidence in the network had been damaged.
Puente had also faced criticism over remarks interpreted by opponents as placing responsibility on human error before investigators had established the cause of the disaster.
Audio recordings raise questions over train movements
The resignation announcement came as attention remained focused on leaked recordings of conversations between train drivers and the railway control centre in Madrid shortly before the collision.
The October 28 accident involved a state-owned Renfe train carrying 397 passengers and an Iryo train carrying 147 passengers.
A failure affecting the train-control and signalling systems had disrupted operations along the affected section, leaving trains stationary.
Recordings published by Spanish media appear to show that the Renfe driver was authorised to continue travelling at normal speed despite the Iryo train being stopped further along the track.
In one exchange, a control-centre operator instructed the Renfe driver to continue the journey under the Lateral Signalling Block, a backup arrangement used when the automatic signalling or data-transmission system is unavailable.
The driver sought confirmation that normal speed was permitted, and the controller answered in the affirmative.
In a separate recording, the Iryo driver informed the control centre that the train was stationary near the entrance signal at Urda after losing communication with the train-control system.
The driver later called again to report that the train’s safety system would not allow it to restart, meaning it remained stopped on the track.
The recordings have raised questions about what information controllers had received and whether the approaching Renfe train should have been instructed to slow down or stop.
Iryo said its carriages had been struck from behind by the Renfe train.
Second deadly crash on the same line
The October disaster was the second major deadly rail accident involving the Madrid-Seville route in 2026.
The January collision killed 46 people, prompting renewed questions about railway infrastructure, safety systems and operational procedures.
The two disasters have intensified public scrutiny of Spain’s high-speed rail network, which is among the largest in the world.
Puente had appeared before lawmakers to explain the government’s response and outline proposed safety improvements before announcing his decision to resign.
His departure announcement comes less than four weeks before the November 29 general election, placing railway safety and accountability among the issues facing Sánchez’s administration.
The investigations into the October collision are expected to be central to determining the technical and operational failures that led to the deaths.
For families of the victims and passengers who depend on the network, the immediate question remains whether the authorities can establish what went wrong and restore confidence in Spain’s rail safety system.
