Senator Jordi Gaseni has criticised the Spanish railway infrastructure manager, Adif, for its handling of disused railway stations in Terres de l'Ebre, Catalonia. Speaking in front of the dilapidated Campredó train station, Gaseni accused Adif of a management model focused on neglect and commercialisation of public railway buildings.
“Both PP and PSOE governments have turned Adif into an entity aimed at doing business by selling land and real estate assets, without any territorial compensation or commitment to the affected municipalities,” Gaseni stated. He cited the Campredó station as an example, where Adif “prefers to let it deteriorate rather than donate it or transfer it for a symbolic price to the Town Council for social use.” The Republican senator called for a change in approach, urging the government to prioritise conservation over profit for these disused stations, which were paid for by public taxes. He stressed that this should not burden local councils willing to renovate and manage them for community benefit.
Calls for National Preservation Plan
Gaseni confirmed that the Senate is expected to debate a motion he presented in December. This motion demands the Spanish government conserve, immediately maintain, and transfer the Campredó station to the local council for a symbolic price of €1. It also asks the Ministry of Transport to draft and approve a national plan for railway heritage preservation. This plan would establish clear criteria for protection, social reuse, and the transfer of disused railway facilities to local councils.
Other examples include the stations on the Horta de Sant Joan and Arnes-Lledó greenway, where Horta Town Council pays rent while awaiting Adif's response to acquire and renovate them. Similarly, the Baix Ebre Regional Council maintains and pays a significant annual lease for the Benifallet and Aldover stations, with the lease due for renewal soon.
Esquerra Republicana, Gaseni's political group, also submitted a written query to the Spanish government. They asked for details on how many railway properties Adif had sold in the Tarragona province over the past 15 years, including annual figures, specific municipalities, and sale amounts. They also enquired about properties auctioned or transferred via agreements. Following a vague and insufficient response from the government, Esquerra Republicana lodged a complaint with the Senate Bureau, citing a lack of specific information and transparency.
Local Councils Face Obstacles
Senator Gaseni has requested a meeting with Adif's Heritage and Urban Planning Management to press for the transfer of disused railway facilities in the Ebro region. Damià Grau, the mayor of Campredó, explained that Adif “has no desire to transfer the heritage. What it wants is to speculate, and when the building has no public use, it wants to set up a real estate business: it wants you to rehabilitate them and pay rent for twenty-five years, and then we'll see what happens.”
Grau emphasised that despite the emblematic nature of these assets and the social benefit they could provide, Campredó cannot mortgage its future. “We demand that this heritage be returned to society and community associations at zero cost or for €1,” he said. Grau detailed that negotiations with Adif have consistently failed. In 2017, despite positive initial discussions with Adif's president, draft transfer agreements and various proposals never materialised. More recently, a 25-year transfer was proposed, but it required the Town Council to cover the entire rehabilitation cost, exceeding €700,000, in addition to paying rent. This was deemed unviable by the council.
