13% staff loss blocks later Mallorca night trains

Around 22.00, several towns on Mallorca are left without public transport when the island’s trains finish for the night. At a hearing in Palma on 22 September, Housing, Territory and Mobility Minister José Luis Mateo said the regional government had done what was needed to extend services. But he conceded that later trains cannot be added without more trains and staff.

The debate concerns Serveis Ferroviaris de Mallorca (SFM), the island’s rail operator. MÉS per Mallorca deputy Ferran Rosa said the current timetable does not suit people working late shifts, students or those travelling in the evening. He argued that mobility needs do not end at 22.00.

Rosa pointed to longer TIB bus services: route 104 runs until 01.30, route 103 until 01.00, and routes 204 and 302 until 00.00. He said hiring more drivers is essential if the parliamentary call for longer rail hours is to be met.

Mateo said the government had increased train frequencies, improved maintenance and safety, and remodelled the workshops at Son Rullan. It has also planned purchases of trains and carriages. He said those works were needed to improve safety, reliability and operating capacity.

SFM’s workforce shrank by 13% during the previous term, Mateo said. The government has drawn up a plan for more than 40 new staff and is negotiating with workers’ representatives, but he gave no timetable.

SFM has already run later services at Christmas, during popular festivals and for some cultural events. Mateo credited workers’ voluntary availability for making those extra services possible, while acknowledging that more work is needed before Mallorca gets wider night train provision.

Topics: Politics

Source: Europa Press / Mallorca.com