Mobilizations against the closure of the regional train between Madrid and Valencia.
Mobilizations against the closure of the regional train between Madrid and Valencia.-
The State Coordinator for the Public, Social and Sustainable Train, of which Ecologistas en Acción is a part, has announced a weekend of mobilizations in opposition to the 'XCuenca' project of the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda (MITMA).
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Railway platforms, unions and organizations from different parts of the State will participate in the concentrations planned in Aranjuez and Valencia.
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For the State Coordinator, the closure of this line constitutes an ecological and social attack, since it materializes MITMA's determined commitment to the highway and the elitist high speed, in a context of climate emergency in which the reduction of emissions is essential.
Representatives of the State Coordinator for the Public, Social and Sustainable Train, as well as unions and municipal mayors, have appeared at a press conference to announce the mobilizations planned for this weekend in Aranjuez and Valencia. They will protest against the closure of the regional train line that connects the Community of Madrid with the Valencian Country.
These mobilizations, which are added to the mobilization that the town of Camporrobles has carried out on the 7th of each month since last year, respond to the strong social and political contestation generated around the 'XCuenca' project of the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Agenda Urban (MITMA). The project aims to dismantle the regional train line that connects Aranjuez, Cuenca and Utiel, and replace it with a bus service and a reinforcement of the high-speed line.
For the Coordinator for the Public, Social and Sustainable Train, made up of 10 regional platforms in which environmental, union, user, consumer, neighborhood and climate entities participate, the closure of this line "constitutes an ecological and social attack, since it materializes MITMA's determined commitment to the road and the elitist high speed.”
Faced with the Ministry's position, which justifies the closure of the service for reasons of economic profitability, José Luis Ordóñez, spokesperson for the State Coordinator, has stressed: "The problem is that the line has been lacking investments for decades in its improvement and maintenance, in addition to suffering the neglect of Renfe, Adif and the entire MITMA, leading to the deterioration of the railway services that could have been provided in it.”
On the other hand, the importance of this regional train as a tool for territorial development was highlighted at the press conference. “This line represents a fundamental element to avoid the depopulation of the areas through which it runs and to connect the provinces of Madrid, Toledo, Cuenca and Valencia. We are four provinces linked by this service whose dismantling responds to a neoliberal vision of transportation,” declared Francisco de los Cobos, representative of the Platform for the Defense of the Railway in Cuenca,
The voice of some municipalities for whom the disappearance of this rail service would be a hard blow was also present in the presentation. In this sense, Inmaculada Alemany, mayor of Camporrobles (province of Valencia), has declared: “This train has been an axis of economic development for the municipality, as well as a key element to access services such as health or education for many. young people who go to Valencia to study.” This line, the mayor has stressed, “is part of the town's DNA. “It connects us with the capitals and structures the territory.”
For his part, Tomás Lorenzo, mayor of the Toledo municipality of Santa Cruz de la Zarza, has regretted that "for more than 40 years no Government has invested in developing this line", as well as that MITMA's attitude is one of "total closure to our demands.” For the mayor, the closure of the line would represent “irreparable damage to our towns.”
Finally, the people participating in the press conference recalled the schedules of the mobilizations planned for this Saturday, April 9:
-Aranjuez. Concentration in front of the Renfe station, at 12:30 p.m.
-Valencia. Concentration in front of the Estació del Nord at 11:30 am.
