The first day of the alternative service on the R2 South between Barcelona and Sant Vicenç de Calders started with complaints about delays, overcrowding, and problems on the buses, coinciding with the start of works in the tunnels. The mayor of Cunit, Jaume Casañas, denounced a deficient day and demanded immediate measures to guarantee the mobility of residents.
According to complaints gathered among users, several travelers took more than two and a half hours to complete the journey back home on Monday. They also reported trips on very crowded trains and attributed part of the saturation to the fact that some scheduled frequencies did not run.
Complaints about the functioning of the alternative plan
This Monday the special operation began on the R2 South line along the coast, with trains and buses as an alternative during the works. According to the information provided, the trains of the alternative service stop at all stations and in some sections they must reduce speed, a factor that lengthens travel times.
Casañas maintained that the planned system did not respond to the real demand for displacements. The mayor of Cunit assured that the alternative bus service also did not cover the needs and conveyed his discomfort over the impact the situation is having among the regular users of the line.
"It cannot be that the fragility of the Rodalies service conditions the life and mental health of all the residents who suffer this chaos" - Jaume Casañas, mayor of Cunit
Incidents on the buses and request for more measures
Among the reported incidents, the mayor recounted an incident in one of the road services early in the morning. As he explained, several users of the 5:20 bus pointed out that there was a problem with the driver and that the journey could not be completed normally.
"Many people who took the 5:20 bus said there was a problem with the driver. That he had exceeded his driving hours and people had to get off at Bellvitge hospital" - Jaume Casañas, mayor of Cunit
Given this scenario, the mayor demanded additional actions if the Generalitat cannot ensure sufficient operation of Rodalies during the works. Among the proposals, he asked for more road reinforcements and changes to the Garraf highway.
"if the Generalitat cannot guarantee that Rodalies operates, the alternatives are more buses and the C 32 toll free" - Jaume Casañas, mayor of Cunit
In the C 32 there is currently a 50% bonus for the recurring user. For the mayor, that reduction is insufficient at a time of continued railway disruption.
"Another 50% is missing to guarantee mobility with Barcelona. People do not go to Barcelona to have a good time. They go to work, to study or out of necessity" - Jaume Casañas, mayor of Cunit
Crowds persist towards Sant Vicenç
The incidents and the saturation were not limited to the first day. On Tuesday afternoon, travelers who were moving in the direction of Sant Vicenç on a saturated train explained that they had to get off in Vilanova to wait for the next unit and be able to continue the journey.
The complaints focus on the lack of capacity, the suppression of some frequencies and the increase in travel time, on a key line for daily commutes between Baix Penedès, Garraf and Barcelona.