He admits that Spain has “the best high-speed network almost in the world”
MADRID, 6 Abr. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The French ambassador in Spain, Jean-Michel Casa, has defended that his country is not hindering the entry of Renfe or any other operator into its high-speed network, recalling that Trenitalia, Italy’s national train company, already operates from autumn 2021 the Paris-Lyon route and to Milan.
In an interview with Europa Press, the ambassador explained that the delays in the launch of Renfe in France are due to the signaling system that the Spanish company has wanted to introduce in the country with its trains and that it is not compatible with the network system French.
“I don’t want to criticize Renfe, but they complain a lot that there are obstacles, and these are the result of some technical choices, the main problem being the train signaling system that they wanted to introduce in France and that is not compatible with the system installed in the line from Paris to Lyon”, he pointed out.
The diplomat has argued that Ouigo, the French national train company that already operates in Spain, has also had to delay its operations in Andalusia for the same reason, because the security system on that line is not compatible with the European system that Equip your trains.
“Ouigo has also had difficulties at the beginning, for example to be able to access some workshops. These are normal things, because the same language is not spoken, there are rules of public markets and public tenders to be respected. In fact, Ouigo is going to go a lot less fast in Andalusia because the signaling system that works on the line is not compatible with the Ouigo trains. So it will have to adapt and change its system”, he clarified.
Jean-Michel Casa has advanced that in the coming years new lines will be opened to competition such as those of Nantes-Lyon or Nantes-Bordeaux, in which Renfe will also be able to operate, but he has remarked that liberalization is advancing as they go studying the reception capacities of the trains, the infrastructures and accessibility to the workshops.
“Ouigo has done a very serious job here (in Spain) and it works perfectly. The trains are full and they have not stolen Renfe’s market, but rather the market has grown and democratized, lowering prices by more than 40%. Ouigo I was convinced that Spain had the best high-speed network in almost the world, but that it was little used and had the capacity for many more trains”, the ambassador defended.
Both Renfe and the public bodies on which it depends, such as the Ministry of Transport and ultimately the Government, have criticized on several occasions the “lack of transparency” in France regarding access to the network, pointing out the “obstacles” placed in that country upon entry.
The Spanish operator plans to launch its high-speed connections between Madrid and Barcelona with Lyon and Marseille before this summer and extend circulation to Paris before the end of the year.
