Madar (International) - Spanish Transport Minister Oscar Puente resigned on Tuesday, November 3, 2026, and withdrew from the upcoming general election, less than a week after one of the deadliest train crashes in the country's history killed 69 people in the central Castilla-La Mancha region, Al Jazeera English reported, citing AFP and Reuters.
Puente said he had decided to resign immediately after the crash but remained in office while the government coordinated its initial response. "A transport minister in a country like Spain cannot continue in office with two accidents of this severity in less than a year," he said, also referring to a high-speed derailment in Andalusia in January that killed 46 people.
The collision happened last Wednesday on the Madrid-Seville line, when a high-speed train operated by state-owned Renfe slammed into a stationary train run by private operator Iryo. Trains on that stretch had been ordered to stop after a signal failure, but central controllers in Madrid, who had taken control after the failure, authorised the Renfe train to continue, according to the source.
Services on the Madrid-Seville line are being reduced while the Railway Safety Agency reviews the line's safety system and the government completes a delayed rollout of the European Rail Traffic Management System. Other planned measures include an artificial intelligence agent to detect anomalies and monitor conversations between drivers and controllers, which Puente said Spain would be the first country to deploy.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has announced a 30-million-euro ($33.5m) aid package. Bereaved families will receive 72,121 euros in direct aid, along with an equal amount as advance compensation.
