Renfe trusted Talgo and his Avril trains to benefit from the particularities of Spain. Already look for solutions in Germany

Spain is a particular country regarding the railway field. That is why the pair formed by Talgo and Renfe sounded especially good to compete with the new trains operators. Both companies could benefit and get a strategic advantage in the Galician corridor, while allowing him to fight in the rest of our country. The reality is that nothing has gone as expected. And now Spain looks for trains in Germany. “They have not given the best possible result”. This is how Óscar Puente, Minister of Transportation, has described the performance of the Talgo S-106 series that Renfe has had in operation. Words pick them up eldiario.eswho point out that Puente will go to a Siemens factory in Germany in search of solutions. The intention, everything indicates, is to reverse the bad results of the Spanish trains with an acquisition of Germans that allow Renfe to compete again on equal terms with Ouigo and Iroyo, who have found the open doors of high speed Low Cost In Madrid-Barcelona. “Corporate”. The bridge trip comes after Renfe will withdraw his Avlo trains from the Madrid-Barcelona corridor. The company’s official response is that AVE trains adapt better to a line in which a “corporate” client profile is better exploited. It is true that Half of the trips That Renfe was carrying out in this corridor made them with the AVE and that the Avlo market share was significantly lower than that of Ouigo and, above all, that of Iroyo. However, the real motive of its abandonment is that some Talgo trains of the S-106 series were being used. A crack. Metaphorical, if we talk about Renfe’s strategy. Material, if we talk about avlo trains. Those known as Avril, projected to compete with these two foreign companies in business volume, presented serious structural problems a few weeks ago. The company He took them out of circulation although at first He denied the problems. Finally, has taken out of circulation The Avlo service but there is no record of a trains relocation. That is, now ouigo and Iro will compete among them two for high speed at low price in that corridor. An oxygen ball for ouigo, which had retired some trains To show more battle in the Andalusian corridor. Recurring problems. As we pointed out, the bridge itself has already suggested that the operation of the aforementioned S-106 of Talgo has not been expected. The first ones that were launched in the Galician corridor and in the line with Asturias. In both cases they accumulated delays and breakdowns. Besides, Nor did they receive the best criticisms for its performance on the roads. Months later, the change of the year also affected the new cars of Talgo. A computer problem left them unused in the early hours of 2025causing important delays the first days. A few weeks ago the most serious fault occurred. Trains cracked (literally). The first solution was circular at a lower speed. The second, probably the most sensible, remove them from the line. Disappointing. The problem with Talgo’s S-106 series is even more disappointing if we take into account that it is a type of train that allows Renfe to Competitive advantage over Ouigo and Iro In the Galician corridor. Talgo is The only company that had built trains that could adapt to the different widths of our country. With compromised production, no one can buy more trains and, therefore, Renfe is in a monopolistic position in the short term. Therefore, perhaps, the disappointment is greater. Finally, trains that had to demonstrate the good Spanish doing in the railway sector have been working for Spanish roads and delays. But, above all, he has closed Renfe the doors of his great tool to compete against his rivals in a corridor where he dominates. Now, Spain will seek solutions in Germany. Photo | Nelso Silva and Siemens In Xataka | Cabinas instead of traveling as sardines: Nox’s key to convert the night train into the alternative to the plane

Remove the talgo from the discord from the Madrid-Barcelona line

In theory they were going to be one of Renfe’s great tricks to compete in the market newly liberalized of high Spanish speed, but the Avril de Talgo trains They have been choked to the railway operator. First by The delay In your delivery. Then for the punctuality problems or the “Effect 2000” who suffered trains at the beginning of 2025. and now for a technical incident that has led Renfe to make a radical decision, according to advances The world: to do without the Avril in one of its most important corridors, Madrid-Barcelona. And all this in the middle of summer. What happened? That Renfe has decided to do without the Talgo-Avril trains (106 series) in one of its most important corridors: the Madrid-Barcelona line. The news He has confirmed it The worldwhich points out that the operator has decided to make a particular ‘Sudoku’ to separate the S106 of the Avlo service that links the city and the capital of the country. The decision comes after a technical problem was detected (cracks in a Bogie) that forced the change of pieces. According to Precise The worldthe rail operator has chosen to remove the Avril from the Madrid-Barcelona line and change them for other trains of the 103 (Siemens) series assigned so far to another of Renfe’s most important corridors, which links Madrid and Seville. The ‘files’ movement has forced S100 to be used between Valencia and Madrid and assign the Avril to Levante. Is it a surprise? Not quite. Last week The economist had echoed already An internal message of Renfe in which he warned his employees that, “due to lack of Bogies of replacement “it was” foreseeable “that the S106 trains of Barcelona was temporarily out of service. Now The world It goes further And he clarifies that Renfe has an Avril section due to lack of spare parts and has chosen to withdraw the rest of the Madrid-Barcelona corridor. And all that, why? By an incident that dates back a few weeks ago, when during a routine review fissures were found in a Bogie of one of the S106 trains (Avril) that provide the service Low Cost Avlo on the Madrid-Barcelona line. He Bogie Integrates suspension systems, wheels, axes and brakes of the cars and the revision of the fleet found that it was not a timely failure. The same problem was detected in the rest of the units (there are five Avril trains assigned to the Madrid-Barcelona corridor), so the affected pieces had to be changed. During that process, Precise The economistRenfe came to suspend the sale of Avlo service tickets between Madrid and Barcelona for the month of August (something that the operator denies) and it was agreed to reduce the maximum speed at which the S106 circulates in a section of 190 km in the Madrid-Barcelona line. What does Renfe say? The operator launched An official statement At the end of July, before the circular that sent its employees was filtered, confirming that during a routine review it was identified “A technical anomaly” In one of the five trains of the 106 series that circulate in the high speed Madrid-Barcelona, which led him to “carry out an exhaustive review” in the rest of trains. “The necessary measures to guarantee the operation of the service were adopted, proceeding to replace the affected systems and reinforce the technical reviews, so that the trains are operating without any anomaly,” Clarifies the operatorwhich ensures that he has carried out inspections in other S106 fleet trains without detecting “any abnormality.” However, in the same statement the company advances its decision to “reorganize” the Avlo services of the 106 series that circulate in the high speed Madrid-Barcelona. Is there more? Yes. After the information of recent days and that Populi voice Publish images of the Bogies spoiled, some unions They have asked to Renfe to withdraw all the units of the model from the circulation. The five Talgo Avril S106 that cover the Avlo service in the Madrid-Barcelona corridor are not the only ones the rail operator has. The fleet exceeds twenty units. The economist Precise In any case that not all units are the same. There would be a subsorie of 15 units endowed with Bogies Iberian wide including the five affected trains. And another 15 of movable rolling with other components that allow the train to combine different types of network. The same newspaper He slippedH oce a few days that the fissures detected in several Bogies He has opened a new front between the trains manufacturer, Talgo, and Renfe: who must assume the cost of repair. The units would still be in the guarantee period, since the Avril were delivered 15 months ago, in May 2024. Why is it important? Because beyond its effects on the Madrid-Barcelona line in the middle of summer, the relationship between Renfe and Talgo on account of the S106 trains, the great commitment of the rail operator to fight in a newly liberalized market. First the trains were delivered with a remarkable delay, which resulted in a fine of 116 million euros that catches the firm In full sale. That bad start was followed punctuality problems and a computer failure at the beginning of this year that was known as “Effect 2000”. In the specific case of the Madrid-Barcelona line, Talgo alleges that the problem is that part of the journey is not in conditions for their trains to reach 300 km/h, according to Precise The world. For Adif, things are very different and remember that other models or operators such as Ouigo or Iro have not detected problems. Images | Nelso Silva (Flickr) and Renfe In Xataka | Portugal has taken a decisive step for its high -speed trains network. One that brings him closer to Galicia, not Madrid

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