Government signs late-night deal to suspend Spain’s rail strike – but minority unions hold out

Strike suspended after late-night talks

Spain has moved to suspend a disruptive nationwide rail strike after the government reached a late-night agreement with major unions on a package of new safety measures and investment commitments. However, smaller unions have refused to sign the deal and plan to continue walkouts, meaning passengers still face potential cancellations and delays in the coming days.

The breakthrough came after hours of talks between the Transport Ministry, state infrastructure manager Adif and leading rail unions representing train drivers and station staff. According to the agreement, Adif will significantly increase its spending on track and signalling upgrades and launch a hiring drive to reinforce maintenance teams across the network.

Main points of the safety deal

As part of the package, Adif is committed to boosting its infrastructure-maintenance budget by almost a fifth and bringing in thousands of additional technical staff to monitor and repair lines more frequently. Renfe, the state rail operator, will also expand its safety capacity by hiring specialist inspectors and strengthening oversight of incident reporting on both high-speed and conventional lines.

The deal creates a new joint safety committee that brings together union representatives, rail operators and independent engineers with the power to halt traffic in real time when serious risks are detected. A nationwide safety audit of the network must also be completed and published within months, focusing on sections where recent accidents and near misses have raised alarm among workers and passengers.

Minority unions keep up pressure

Unions that backed the agreement argue that the strike has achieved its main goal: forcing the government to put rail safety at the centre of its investment plans after years of complaints about overloaded staff and ageing infrastructure. They say the combination of more funding, fresh hires and stronger oversight should reduce the risk of derailments, signalling failures and other incidents that have repeatedly disrupted services.

However, minority unions have rejected the compromise as insufficient and announced they will maintain 24-hour stoppages on key days. These groups insist that the promised funding is not enough to address what they describe as chronic understaffing and structural safety problems on some regional and commuter lines. They also criticise the timetable for implementing the measures, warning that concrete improvements may take too long to reach front-line workers.

What rail passengers should expect

As a result, while the broad nationwide strike is officially suspended, pockets of industrial action are still expected to affect certain routes, particularly in regional and freight services. Passengers are being urged to check timetables before travelling and to opt for flexible or refundable tickets where possible, as last-minute changes to schedules cannot be ruled out.

Impact on Spain’s rail network

The late-night deal has eased immediate fears of a prolonged shutdown of Spain’s rail network, which is a critical backbone for daily commuters and long-distance travellers alike. Business groups had warned that continued disruption would push more people back to planes and private cars, undercutting efforts to cut emissions and driving up travel costs for companies.

What happens next

Looking ahead, the government is presenting the agreement as the first step in a broader multi-year safety and modernisation plan for the rail system. Officials say the new investments will focus on known blackspots and bottlenecks, with the aim of improving reliability and restoring public confidence after days of turmoil. For rail workers, the real test will be whether the promised staff increases and safety upgrades arrive on the ground fast enough to justify standing down their protest.