Rodalies to Run 66% of Peak Trains in Nov. 17 Renfe Strike

Commuters in Catalonia will have about two thirds of their usual Rodalies trains at rush hour on Tuesday, Nov. 17, when Renfe staff across Spain go on strike for the full day. Outside peak hours, only 33% of trains are required to run, according to the minimum-service plan reported by Rus Tourism News.

The strike runs from midnight until 11:59 p.m. on Nov. 17. It covers employees across the Renfe group, Spain’s state rail operator, including train drivers and other operational staff, so high-speed, long-distance, regional and commuter lines are all affected.

What it means for Rodalies commuters

Rodalies de Catalunya (the Barcelona area and Catalan commuter rail network) has its own minimum-service arrangement, separate from the rest of Spain. It must run 66% of trains during peak periods and 33% during the rest of the day.

In Catalonia, peak periods are set as 6 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Anyone travelling between those windows, for a late-morning shift or an evening out, will be using a timetable with two thirds of the normal trains missing.

Rodalies publishes the timetables that apply on strike days, and those are the place to check which individual trains will run.

High-speed and long-distance trains from Barcelona

Spain’s Ministry of Transport signed a resolution on Nov. 12 that sets the minimum service for Renfe across the country. It requires 72% of the affected high-speed and long-distance trains to run. In numbers, 177 of the 246 trains covered by the resolution are on the guaranteed list.

That matters for anyone booked on a Renfe train between Barcelona and Madrid, Valencia, Seville or other large cities. A train left off the guaranteed list may be cancelled or moved, depending on how many staff join the strike.

Regional Media Distancia trains, which link mid-sized cities, must run at 65%: 444 of 682 affected trains are covered. For Cercanías commuter networks in regions without their own separate rules, the ministry set a minimum of 75% at peak times and 50% off-peak. Those figures do not apply to Rodalies, which has the lower Catalan percentages above.

The percentages are minimums. Operators can run more trains if staffing allows, so the share of cancelled trains on the day may be smaller than the figures suggest.

Ouigo and Iryo passengers

The resolution sets requirements for Renfe operations. Passengers holding tickets with Ouigo España or Iryo, the other high-speed operators, should not read Renfe’s percentages as applying to their trains, according to the report. Those companies publish their own service information.

Strike in France on the same day

Rail workers in France are also walking out on Nov. 17. In a joint statement dated Nov. 13, the unions CGT-Cheminots, SUD-Rail and CFDT-Cheminots called on railway employees to strike over pay, staffing and the future of public rail services.

France has no single national percentage of trains that must run. Disruption will depend on how many employees take part and on the plans each operator publishes. Regional services in Pays de la Loire and Centre-Val de Loire have already warned passengers of likely disruption. The effect on TGV INOUI, OUIGO France and Intercités trains had not been set in final schedules.

For people in Barcelona with trips to France, cross-border trains may be affected from either side of the border. Strikes in both countries do not mean every international train will be cancelled, the report notes, and SNCF Connect lists confirmed French timetables.

Rebooking and refunds

When a train is cancelled, passengers are told to contact the ticket seller or the rail company for rebooking or refund options. European rail passenger rights cover some disruption cases, but what a traveller is owed depends on the journey, the operator and the rules that apply. A ticket bought before the strike was called does not guarantee that the original departure will run. Travellers heading to an airport are advised to leave extra time rather than rely on a tight rail-to-flight link, and more background on how strike notice and minimum services work in Spain is available on this site.

Source: rustourismnews.com