The Council of Ministers expanded the maintenance contract for high-speed control systems by 11.5 million, 24 hours before the security ruling in Urda. The new ERTMS system has accumulated over two and a half years of delays.
According to El Debate, the Council of Ministers authorised on 27 October a modification of the maintenance contract for the traffic control installations of the high-speed lines Madrid-Sevilla, Córdoba-Málaga, and the branch of La Sagra-Toledo. The additional amount totals 11,508,626.53 euros over the initial budget, and the contract corresponds to the temporary union of companies UTE GTS Sistem Mantenimiento Madrid-Sevilla.
The agreement is justified by a potential cost overrun in the layout, as both the previous LZB system and the new ERTMS, which meets European standards for such lines, must remain active simultaneously. The LZB was supposed to be decommissioned in 2024, but it has been failing recurrently.
The contract necessary for the system change was tendered in 2020 and the works began in 2021. The deadline announced by the Ministry of Transport, led by Óscar Puente, was 2024 and was later set for April 2025, but this was also not met. The new forecasts place the delivery of the ERTMS in 2027, which adds more than two years of delay compared to the last committed date.
The accident-prone track, at the height of Urda (Toledo), is the only high-speed line in the country still operating with the previous system, according to published information. Until the full implementation of the ERTMS, the line will continue to depend on both systems.
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